


Tea With Tessa

by Megumi_L1



Category: Full Metal Panic
Genre: Cute Stuffed Animal(s), F/M, Flashback(s), Gen, Info Dumps, Lover's Angst, Mild Language, Moments of Cute, Non-Canon Fanfiction, Vulgar Language, brief nudity
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-06-07
Packaged: 2019-03-20 20:41:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 33,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13725585
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Megumi_L1/pseuds/Megumi_L1
Summary: Full Metal Panicbelongs to Shouji Gatou. I'm borrowing some of the characters for a bit.This takes place as the dust is still settling after Kaname returns to Japan.Kaname and Sousuke are together and he is living in the apartment building across from hers again. Kyouko and Ono-D are spending some "exclusive" time together. Kurz and Melissa are "exploring their relationship options". And Tessa is quietly settling into a somewhat quieter life - so it seems - and Michael/Michel Lemon is her "loyal assistant".Hoping to catch up with her friends, Tessa decides to invite them to tea one afternoon....





	1. Tea With Tessa: A Lovely Time Together: pt 1/2 of ?

**Author's Note:**

> April 2018: G's (I do hope that you don't mind me mentioning your name) comment reminded me that I need to do _complete_ readings of my chapters/parts before I write the next chapter/part. (Thank you!) So, I re-read Chapter 1 of this story in preparation for writing its Chapter 2, and it's been tweaked. It better reflects what I want it to say. (But not yet completely.)
> 
> May 2018: Every addition so far includes tweaking to the rest of it. Almost ready to start writing Chapter 2.

~Jindai High's schoolyard~

Sousuke gently urged Kaname into his arms, even more gently exhaled, raised his head a little, and dared to allow his eyes to close briefly while he experienced _finally_ embracing her.

And theoretically at least, he could hold her forever.

She hesitated, snuggled against him, then sighed and went just a little bit weak, as though her troubles were almost too much for her to bear.

He instinctively held her even closer.

 _Give me all of your troubles, Kaname,_ he thought.

He knew that she wouldn't do that. But she needed to know that she could. Anytime. Anywhere.

After a few long seconds she pulled back to look up into his eyes, and he saw everything that he wanted to see in hers...and some things that he _didn't._

And certainly there was also a lot to see in _his_ eyes.

Considering the conversation that they needed to have, both of them were in deep, deep trouble.

But that was all right.

Neither of them was backing down.

And he'd meant what he'd said.

As long as Kaname remained with him, he wouldn't need weapons.

But she was a weapon herself, being strong, loud, tough and quite able to defend herself.

He didn't know everything about her life prior to having met her, but he was aware that much of this was fueled by the struggles she had been through earlier in her life. Not many details of these struggles had been in her Mithril file, but as one got to know her it was possible to make educated guesses.

But she would be a little different now.

She knew what it was like to be the focus of a battle that would have either changed the entire world or returned it, battered, to normal.

And within it she'd had a glimpse of the world that he'd walked away from.

All of it had been a cruel training experience, and though her strength and toughness had prevailed, her perceptions would forever be affected.

He absentmindedly pressed his mouth to the top of her head.

 _Now it'll be_ me _guiding_ you, he thought.

And he would make sure that she could remain here. He didn't intend for anyone to be able to take her away from him again. No one would ever be allowed to do as they wished with her. Even if that meant giving up his life for it.

No. For _her._

There were no doubts or questions about _that,_ even though he wasn't sure how they were going to go forward from here. They had navigated many metaphorical bumps both separately and together, and there were yet more in their path.

But they were going to walk that path together.

It was about damned time.

How many days and nights had he lived without her?

If he pondered it for a bit he could calculate the answer to the second.

But that would be for a report that he wasn't going to write. _That_ life was over for him.

Someone else could be Uruz 7 or whatever the hell else that would be once whoever had enough grievances to start new trouble in the world had the means to do so.

 _This_ was his life now. With Kaname. And however she wanted to live _her_ life.

He raised a hand to stroke her hair and stopped himself before easing it up and over her shoulder so he could take off the ribbon.

She gasped, and her eyes widened.

_What is he-_

"Sou-"

The school's P.A. system interrupted with a bit of static before broadcasting a stern-sounding Principal Tsuboi's voice nearly demanding that both Sousuke and Kaname report to her office _right now_ , clearly projected throughout the opened windows and empty spaces of the school and causing some of those within its range to jump in place.

But soon, having caught the unspoken cue, the near-mass of those surrounding Sousuke and Kaname and also those overcrowding the windows began to disperse, some with the practised ease of having to do so before - which Sousuke, whose behaviour at Jindai High had often caused evacuation-worthy situations, noticed with a wince - some grudgingly, and some others wishing the two well in a variety of ways.

Sousuke frowned with pensive concentration, then gently released Kaname, took her by a hand, and purposely walked towards the school's entrance, neither of them acknowledging that a path was being cleared for them. And neither of them seemed to notice that some of their friends were gathering about six feet behind them, their concern evident on their faces.

-FMPFTWT-

~Nearly two meters behind Sousuke and Kaname~

"D'you think they're in trouble?" Shinji whispered.

"Why are you whispering?" Ono-D asked.

Shinji scowled.

"So they won't hear me," he said.

Ono-D scowled.

"They're not deaf, you know. They're probably just ignoring us," he said.

Shinji winced.

"Yeah...because they might be in trouble and that's more important," he said.

Ono-D briefly facepalmed.

"Kazama... _geeze_..." he said with a bit of frustration.

Kyouko shook her head slowly while continuing to watch Sousuke and Kaname.

 _I'm so happy for both of you. But we've got a_ lot _of catching up to do, and I don't care_ how _long it takes_ , she thought.

" _Oooooo,_ she's so _lucky!_ " Mizuki said, then smirked and added: "But he kissed _me_ first."

Ono-D and Shinji looked at her with dropped jaws, then looked at the frowning Kyouko for either verification or clarification.

"It probably didn't _mean_ anything, so it doesn't count," she said, which caused Mizuki to sniff haughtily.

"He _still_ kissed me first," she said.

"Well, I guess he's the one that got away," Shinji nervously half-joked.

Ono-D laughed, which caused Mizuki to glare at him.

"All of you ruined my beautiful memory!" she said.

Kyouko gave her a slightly pitying look, then shook her head slowly again.

Ono-D frowned at Kyouko's apparent distress, then shook his head the way that she had.

"That doesn't matter, does it?" he asked.

At that, Mizuki gasped indignantly and sputtered a little.

"You, you..."

Shinji's eyes narrowed a little.

"They just went inside. Come on," he said.

Ono-D frowned.

"We're not going to follow them all the way, are we?" he asked.

Shinji shook his head.

"No! We're going to wait for them. I've got a _lot_ of questions for them. Don't you, too, Kyouko?"

She hesitated, then nodded.

"Yeah..."

Mizuki scowled.

"Well _I_ don't," she said.

Kyouko frowned at her, and she suddenly grinned.

"But I'm glad she's back. Really, I'm glad. I was worried. Ha ha."

The others exhaled, then showed her their backs and walked on.

She pouted.

"I'm her friend too!"

-FMPFTWT-

~Jindai High Principal's Office~

The normally calm Principal Tsuboi was so bothered by the circumstances surrounding the two young people who were seated in front of her desk and also trying not to stare at the two stuffed manila folders on it that she didn't know whether to sit or stand.

_They're fortunate that he doesn't need an entire file cabinet for himself, ___

__she thought._ _

____

She paced behind the desk instead, her glance alternating between them, the folders, the walls, and the window.

____

"You chose today of all days to come back. I don't know why. I don't know _how._ I _tried_ to find you. _Both_ of you. I called, sent letters, then finally called the police only to be told you were missing - I already knew _that._ "

____

She exhaled.

____

"And then came the stories about the attacks..."

____

She looked pointedly at Sousuke, who reflexively stiffened in preparation for a scolding.

____

She snuck a glance at Kaname.

____

_He_ is _well-trained,_ she thought.

____

"Who _are_ you, _really?_ " she asked him.

____

Sousuke resisted the urge to stand up and salute.

____

"Ma'am, my name really is Sousuke Sagara," he replied.

____

She nodded thoughtfully.

____

"Uh- _huh._ And you're _really_ a soldier from this 'Mithril' who was assigned to protect Miss Chidori. Why?" 

____

Sousuke looked at Kaname. She nodded, and he returned his look to Principal Tsuboi.

____

"She...her life was being threatened by people associated with international organisations who thought that she was in possession of important information," he responded.

____

"And _was_ she? Should we be worried about those people now? I would suppose not, since you're here."

____

"It wasn't what they expected."

____

" _And...?_ "

____

"At the moment, her life is no longer in danger."

____

"I see...and I can _also_ see that there's a lot that you're not telling me. It's probably classified information."

____

She put up a palm as Sousuke opened his mouth again.

____

"No. I'm not going to deal with any more of your... _situation_. It's become too much. It's not worth it. I _was_ considering not allowing you to graduate. It's not just because your records were falsified. You've caused a _lot_ of trouble and disruption to this school and everyone in it - and undoubtedly to Miss Chidori's life - and throughout this area. Perhaps even the entire country! And what about of all of the classes that you've missed? But that wouldn't be fair to your future fellow classmates. The troubles will seem to be far less if they're spread out throughout the rest of the world."

____

Sousuke went pale, and Kaname hung her head and sighed softly.

____

The principal tapped one of the folders for no apparent reason; neither of them had any writing or decoration on it.

____

"I can't let this school's reputation be further affected by this either. And what about Miss Chidori's future? So I have decided to give both of you a few days to study for a special final exam."

____

Sousuke winced, and Kaname sagged until she nearly slid off her chair.

____

A _FEW DAYS?_ For a "special final exam"?

____

The principal firmly nodded.

____

"If you pass the test, you can graduate. If you fail, I'll personally make the summer-school arrangements. Whether everyone who will have to participate in this likes it or not."

____

This brought Kaname back full upright.

____

_That could mess up my plans! Wait..._ what _plans? But I was_ going _to make plans!_ she thought.

____

Sousuke scowled.

____

I'm _the one who should be punished,_

__he thought._ _

"You're dismissed." The principal frowned, then picked up the files. "You both should go home. You've got a _lot_ \- and she glanced at Sousuke - "of studying to do."

____

"Yes, ma'am," Sousuke and Kaname said in near-unison, then rose, bowed, and left the office.

____

The principal thoughtfully watched them leave.

____

_I'm glad that you're back in Japan, Miss Chidori. But strangely, I was more worried about_ him _than I was about_ you. _In fact, I'm_ still _worried about him. He's strong, but I don't know if he can make it here without you, _she thought.__

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~On an elaborate second-floor balcony with a nice view of a flower-filled garden~

______ _ _

Tessa, wearing a light skirt suit and flats and sitting comfortably on one side of a two-seater couch facing the garden - a Bonta _-kun_ doll sat on the other side - nodded occasionally as she listened to someone speaking via a telephone receiver.

______ _ _

"Yes. Thank you," she said after about a minute, then turned a little to watch Michael Lemon, wearing a stiff suit and a towel over a forearm, adjust his position so he could take the phone receiver from her.

______ _ _

"Thank you, Mr. Lemon," Tessa said.

______ _ _

"Y-you're welcome, Miss Testarossa," Michael said, then replaced the receiver, bowed, and turned to leave.

______ _ _

She sighed.

______ _ _

"You don't have to be 'my loyal assistant' right now," she said.

______ _ _

He swallowed, then looked around nervously.

______ _ _

"I don't dare risk _their_ disapproval," he said a little shakily, then cleared his throat. "A-after all, this is the only way _they_ allow me to be close to - I mean watch over you. For _their_ peace of mind, I mean."

______ _ _

She scowled.

______ _ _

"As you can tell from the phone calls, _they_ still watch over everything that's going on. You allowed _those two_ to trick you into believing that it's necessary to watch over me-"

______ _ _

He sagged, and she frowned.

______ _ _

"I'm sorry. I do appreciate your help," she finished.

______ _ _

"But I'm so disposable," he said sadly.

______ _ _

She winced.

______ _ _

"Don't say that. You're really helping me. You're a _very good_ 'loyal assistant'," she tried to reassure him.

______ _ _

He scowled.

______ _ _

"I don't appreciate being the butler, too," he grumbled.

______ _ _

She gave him a little wicked smile that made him gasp and blush.

______ _ _

"That was _my_ request. To keep a good friend close," she said.

______ _ _

This caught him off-guard, and he stammered as he tried to think of how to respond to that.

______ _ _

Finally, he bowed again.

______ _ _

"Uh - thank you, Miss...Miss Tessa...I, I'll be going now. To make sure that everything is ready for you. Y-your other appointments."

______ _ _

She nodded, and he cautiously went on his way.

______ _ _

She shook her head slowly, then laughed softly.

______ _ _

"My poor assistant," she said.

______ _ _

__But that's right. He_ is_ mine, she thought.

_____ _

She blushed.

_____ _

_Ahhh, but not in_ that _way!_

_____ _

She picked up Bonta _-kun_ , then held it close.

_____ _

This one was a surprise replacement, an anonymous gift found one morning on this house's front doorstep. The "original" one had been destroyed during the recent battles; someone had cared enough to want her to have a new one.

_____ _

For a time she had half-seriously imagined that this someone was Sousuke, but even if it had been it was likely that Kaname had asked him to do it - and that would have been if she had known that Tessa had once had one.

_____ _

And would that knowledge have caused Kaname to be jealous?

_____ _

She briefly shook her head.

_____ _

"There isn't time to dwell on such thoughts," she said softly.

_____ _

Logically anyway, it wasn't Sousuke, and it wasn't Mr. Lemon either - he would have given it to her directly.

_____ _

_Perhaps one of my former subordinates. But everyone's somewhere else. And this isn't really a priority. But one day I'll find out who, and I'll thank that person directly,_ , she thought.

_____ _

"I can't take you with me today," she told the plush animal. "But don't worry, Mr. Lemon will make sure that you're safe..."

_____ _

An image of her brother, smirking with the arrogant confidence that had died with him, suddenly appeared in her mind.

_____ _

She winced, as tears suddenly fell in response to the image.

_____ _

"So many people died, so much was lost. Was it _really_ necessary for you to do things that way? And we became enemies..." 

_____ _

The world's wounds were still being treated. But there was hope.

_____ _

And _those_ two finally being together was proof that at least some of the goals and plans to right the wrongs had been realised.

_____ _

That hurt a little. But she'd already known that Kaname had gotten Sousuke's heart a long time ago.

_____ _

It _all_ felt like a long time ago.

_____ _

But they'd made it. Not all of the people involved in this had. And how many had died so those two could be alive?

_____ _

But it was _something._

_____ _

Perhaps one day she could truly cheer them on.

_____ _

Would they get married?

_____ _

She scowled.

_____ _

_No, because of his situation that's nearly impossible for them to do,_ she thought.

_____ _

But it was possible for them to have children, and that led to one of the disturbing but necessary reasons for this day's appointments.

_____ _

_What will happen if_ that cycle _begins again?_ she wondered.

_____ _

No one had the resources or time to ensure that those who wanted to control the world for their own reasons wouldn't ever be able to do so.

_____ _

And with time, people would forget the recent events and perhaps react when it was too late.

_____ _

Some of those who would never forget were spread out throughout the world, each of them doing their part to stop the potential new battles from happening.

_____ _

But there weren't enough of those people.

_____ _

Tessa scowled again.

_____ _

There was only so much that she herself could do. And when she went back into this house, her "Uncle" Jerome Borda and her former executive officer Richard Mardukas would be waiting for her.

_____ _

_According to Mr. Lemon, Mr. Mardukas came back from his holiday as stern as ever,_ she thought.

_____ _

She restrained a groan. She didn't want to add to what already would be an energy-draining day filled with meetings about "the past, present and the potential future". And also it was already frustrating. With Mithril disbanded, there was only so much that the three of them could do.

_____ _

Yes, there were still allies and contacts. But resolutions would still take longer than when more swords had been raised against injustice.

_____ _

She sagged a little, then forced herself to stand up.

_____ _

_I can't smile today. When can I have a day all to myself?_

_____ _

She would have to seize an opportunity for one when she could.

_____ _

She sagged again.

_____ _

_But I'm not allowed to leave the house without Mr. Lemon at my side._

_____ _

At least he was pleasant company. But there were certain things that she could talk to only certain people about, and she missed her friends and the survivors amongst those who had been under her command.

_____ _

She smiled as an idea came to her, then frowned as she realised that her dear "Uncle" and Mr. Mardukas would watch everything and everyone that was within range of her - which was worse than doing this from a distance as they did now.

_____ _

"I'll do it anyway," she said a little grumpily, then put on a happy face, straightened herself up and re-entered the house.

_____ _

-FMPFTWT-

_____ _

~Jindai High schoolyard~

_____ _

Sousuke and Kaname were only a little bit surprised to see Kyouko, Ono-D and Shinji waiting for them.

_____ _

_And look how close Kyouko and Ono-D are sitting to each other!_ Kaname noted.

_____ _

"Are you two all right?" Kyouko looked very concerned. "Are you in trouble?"

_____ _

Kaname scowled.

_____ _

"We'll talk about it later. I'm a little tired now," she said.

_____ _

"Oh, okay." Kyouko stared hard at Kaname, making her a little flustered. "You'll tell me _everything_ , right?"

_____ _

Kaname swallowed.

_____ _

"Um, only if _you_ will!" she said.

_____ _

Kyouko blushed, then snuck a glance at Ono-D that no one else seemed to notice.

_____ _

"Oh, right, Mizuki - where is she?" she suddenly conveniently remembered.

_____ _

Kaname's eyebrows went up. Kyouko wasn't quite behaving like herself.

_____ _

_How much did I miss?_ she wondered.

_____ _

Ono-D blushed a little, then said: "Ahhh, Mizuki said she had to go home, and the others just left, I guess."

_____ _

"That's fine," Sousuke said, then looked at Shinji, who looked as though he wanted to ask a question. "What is it, Kazama - I mean Shinji?"

_____ _

Shinji hesitated, then asked: "Um, you guys want to hang out, somewhere?"

_____ _

-FMPFTWT-

_____ _

Their friends were careful to keep to familiar areas, but it was still obvious that though the public transportation routes remained much the same, the areas at least had changed: Some places were new, some had been replaced by others, some were shut-up, and some smaller areas were forbidden to walk in due to construction.

_____ _

And even some of the people were different: They were more wary, more _aware_ of who was around them.

_____ _

To Sousuke, who was used to changed areas and circumstances, this was disturbing.

_____ _

But to Kaname, it was a little frightening, even disorienting, and at one point she grabbed Sousuke's arm for strength and support.

_____ _

These areas, at least, were not part of the Japan that they had left.

_____ _

"Ah, _yes!_ " Shinji said with a little too much excitement as they approached an arcade that was still in place. "Let's go in here for a while, huh? Then we can get something to eat...oops..."

_____ _

Sousuke waved this aside with his free hand.

_____ _

"It's all right. I'll treat everyone today," he said, and blushed a little in response to Kaname's suspicious look.

_____ _

She sighed.

_____ _

"I forgot, you're secretly rich," she said, and their friends wide-eyed Sousuke, whose blush deepened.

_____ _

"Not _really_ , but I have-" he began.

_____ _

Ono-D grabbed his other arm.

_____ _

"That's good enough, let's go!" he said, and hurried Sousuke and therefore Kaname into the arcade.

_____ _

-FMPFTWT-

_____ _

After the "boys" changed some money into coins, they took to a shooting game at which Sousuke, naturally, got a higher score than the other two.

_____ _

Refusing to admit defeat for some reason, Ono-D moved to a pinball machine, but Sousuke beat him there, too.

_____ _

"He's good at things that need you to focus," Shinji told him, but Ono-D vowed to find a game that he could beat Sousuke at, and went in search of one as Shinji kept up with him and Sousuke, in slow pursuit, watched with a raised eyebrow.

_____ _

And while they were at that, Kyouko and Kaname continued to talk near one of the walls while pretending to look for a game to play so they didn't appear to be loitering.

_____ _

"But _why_ didn't you tell me, Kana? I would have kept it a secret."

_____ _

"I didn't want you to be involved." Kaname winced, then looked away. "And they might have - have _killed_ you to get to me. I - we - we'd have been going to your funeral...if there had been anything...left...that is, everyone else would have been-"

_____ _

_Damn it, I'm not making any sense. But I can't help it!_ she thought.

_____ _

"I couldn't... _damn it_ , Kyouko, I was trying to keep everyone safe! _Ah-_ "

_____ _

The arcade's general noise level kept others from hearing their conversation, but Kaname still briefly clapped a hand over her mouth. 

_____ _

Uncaring, Kyouko glared at her.

_____ _

"I _know_ that! But you - you and Sousuke, you were hiding something from me, and I didn't know why, and it hurt so much. Why didn't both of you trust me?"

_____ _

" _It wasn't that._ "

_____ _

"I can handle myself, Kana!"

_____ _

" _I know that._ You're one of the strongest people that I know. But...I just _couldn't,_ no, _wouldn't_ , let you get hurt. I wasn't going to take that chance. That's why I...went to him. _Them._ The people who wanted to...change things. If I hadn't, they would have kept hurting people and killing people and-"

_____ _

Kyouko actually looked at her with disgust, but it was slightly muted with concern.

_____ _

"That happened anyway, Kana."

_____ _

Kaname sadly nodded.

_____ _

"And it's all my fault. If I hadn't been so weak and had made decisions earlier...maybe this wouldn't have happened. I don't want pity. I don't deserve it. I can..."

_____ _

Kyouko exhaled.

_____ _

"I'm still trying to understand what happened. I just know that _something_ was going on and I couldn't do anything because you kept everyone away. You didn't tell anyone anything. Except maybe _Sousuke_ , but _he_ knew what was going on too, didn't he? Because he was a part of it, right?"

_____ _

Kaname managed a small smile.

_____ _

"Of _course_ , he's my bodyguard. That's why he was a student," she said.

_____ _

Kyouko shook her head slowly.

_____ _

"We _knew_ he was so close to you for a reason. We didn't know what that was, other than-"

_____ _

Kaname blushed.

_____ _

"Don't say it-"

_____ _

"But you know it's true. It was love at first sight. But you're still so stubborn, and he's still a little clueless. Well, that's kind of okay, since he grew up the way he did. You're probably the first girl he-"

_____ _

" _HEY._ What are you trying to say?!"

_____ _

"I'm not trying to say _anything!_ "

_____ _

"Yeah? So what's with that look, huh?"

_____ _

" _What_ look? And Ono-D told me-"

_____ _

"Uh- _huh._ What are _you_ hiding?"

_____ _

" _Nothing!_ "

_____ _

"You're lying."

_____ _

" _No!_ "

_____ _

Then Kyouko blushed.

_____ _

"Well...we spend a little time together-"

_____ _

"Oh- _ho!_ "

_____ _

"...Nothing like _that._ We just talk. About...things."

_____ _

Kaname winced again.

_____ _

"I see...I'm sorry."

_____ _

Kyouko looked away.

_____ _

"He visited me in the hospital, too. And he told me that he was so upset with Sousuke, that it was all _his_ fault, and he really told him off. And Sousuke just stood there and accepted it. But when he - Sousuke - said that he was going to bring you back no matter what, Ono-D told me that he knew that he meant it. But I'm not surprised that Sousuke said that. He's always been...devoted to you. That's why I'm not as mad at him as I'm supposed to be. You're not here just because he wants you to be with us. He also did it for himself. Because he wants to be with you. Here. With us."

_____ _

Kaname gasped, then fought the urge to cry. Sousuke would rush over to her if she cried, and threaten to punch out whoever or whatever had distressed her - that part would likely never go away.

_____ _

"Kyouko..."

_____ _

She wanted to think about what Kyouko had said. About _everything_. But it all came down to one thing. One _person._

_____ _

"Sousuke..."

_____ _

"Yes, Kaname?"

_____ _

Shinji was right behind him, and both males looked a little bothered.

_____ _

But Kaname was more bothered that they'd snuck up on her and Kyouko, and she automatically raised a shaking fist.

_____ _

_How much did you hear?!_

_____ _

" _You two-_ "

_____ _

" _I won!_ " Ono-D cried out over some of the noise, and both Kyouko and Kaname tried to figure out where he was.

_____ _

Shinji sighed.

_____ _

"Don't bother about him," he said, then stood a small distance away from Kyouko while Sousuke stood next to Kaname. "He'll come over when he realises that everyone already gave up on him."

_____ _

Kaname and Kyouko looked at him with raised eyebrows, and he sighed again.

_____ _

"He's playing a modified love game," he said.

_____ _

Kaname and a slightly blushing Kyouko eyed the suddenly blushing Sousuke.

_____ _

"Yeah, that's one game _anyone_ could beat _you_ at," Kaname said half-seriously.

_____ _

Sousuke recovered enough to scowl.

_____ _

"I can play a variety of games. But not _that_ one," he said a little grumpily.

_____ _

Kaname patted his hand, and he relaxed and smiled at her.

_____ _

The smile made her blush - he hadn't often showed her such a genuine relaxed expression - and she pulled her hand away as though his skin had burned her.

_____ _

_But I want to see him smile like that every day,_ she thought.

_____ _

"L-let's find Ono-D, then get something to eat," she said.

_____ _

-FWPFTWT-

_____ _

There was a hamburger place near the arcade, and Sousuke gladly paid for the others' food, but he ordered his own from the milder side of the menu.

_____ _

"I had to have surgery," he explained as he brought over a tray with iced tea and two baked vegetable burgers on it.

_____ _

Kaname winced.

_____ _

_I'll bet that's my fault too,_ she thought.

_____ _

"Uh - okay, so no more fattening meat dishes for you," she half-teased him.

_____ _

He shook his head.

_____ _

"No alcohol and no greasy food."

_____ _

"Oh, okay."

_____ _

He squeezed her hand after he sat down, and she gratefully smiled at him.

_____ _

_You_ do _understand,_ she thought.

_____ _

And it was _wonderful_ , a dream come true, that the two of them could enjoy a meal with friends without having to worry about anyone attacking them.

_____ _

At least she _hoped_ that no one would attack them. Hadn't it been peaceful when they had been attacked?

_____ _

_I can't let that get me down. We're here now, right? So let's enjoy it,_ she thought, then raised her soda container.

_____ _

"Let's celebrate!" she said.

_____ _

"Celebrate what?" Ono-D asked, but raised his drink container with the others anyway.

_____ _

Kaname smiled, and blushed a little.

_____ _

"We made it. We're here," she said.

_____ _

Shinji grinned.

_____ _

"That's good enough for _me,_ " he said.

_____ _

"Me, too," Kyouko said.

_____ _

"And me," Ono-D said.

_____ _

"Yes," Sousuke said.

_____ _

They tapped their containers together with an enthusiastic near-unison " _Kanpai!_ ", grinned at each other, then lowered the containers and began to eat.

_____ _

-FMPFTWT-

_____ _

After the meal, they did a little sight-seeing, went to a bookstore, visited another arcade, stopped at a convenience store so Kaname could get an assortment of items, then went for a walk to nowhere in particular.

_____ _

Then although nothing "couple-like" had happened, Shinji began to feel like the odd man out, and politely excused himself, declining Ono-D's offer that the others walk with him to the nearest train station.

_____ _

"I'll see you guys later. Take care, all right?"

_____ _

"Sure."

_____ _

Kyouko suddenly blushed.

_____ _

"Hey! Where are you leaving us at? You're doing it on _purpose._ "

_____ _

Shinji waved this away.

_____ _

"No, no-"

_____ _

"Yes, _yes!_ " Kyouko and Kaname said as one, but they let him go anyway.

_____ _

Ono-D looked to see what Kyouko was talking about, then blushed himself.

_____ _

Sousuke looked, then frowned, not understanding what the fuss was about.

_____ _

"It's just a jewellery store," he said.

_____ _

A furiously blushing Kaname suddenly grabbed him by the forearm, then stomped forwards.

_____ _

"You don't get it, do you?" she demanded.

_____ _

"Understand _what?_ " he asked, and she grunted her frustration.

_____ _

" _Never mind!_ " she said, and walked faster.

_____ _

Ono-D and Kyouko shook their heads slowly at the other two, then he extended an elbow to her and she gracefully took it.

_____ _

" _What_ a beautiful day," he said with twitching lips - he was trying to keep from laughing.

_____ _

Kyouko nodded.

_____ _

"Yeah, let's leave those two alone. Hey, Kana! We'll see you two later, all right?"

_____ _

Kaname made a waving gesture with her free hand.

_____ _

"Yeah, yeah, we're sorry, we'll catch up later, I'll call you, good night!" she said.

_____ _

-FMPFTWT-

_____ _

~Kitchen in Kaname's apartment~

_____ _

"I wonder what they're doing now?" Kaname asked softly as she prepared two servings of instant tea on the table.

_____ _

Sousuke, nervously seated at the table, grimaced, but didn't say anything.

_____ _

_I don't want_ this _kind of tea. But I shouldn't complain about it,_ he thought.

_____ _

She scowled at him.

_____ _

_Why is_ he _annoyed?_ she wondered.

_____ _

"It's _your_ fault...why _do_ you think people shop at jewellery stores?" she wanted to know.

_____ _

"I've never had a reason to shop at one, so-" he began.

_____ _

"Argh."

_____ _

She sat down.

_____ _

" _Rings_ , Sousuke. People buy _rings_ at jewellery stores. Other things too, I mean like watches and necklaces, but all _kinds_ of rings too. Like-"

_____ _

She blushed deeply.

_____ _

"-uhm, all kinds of rings. For special occasions. And - _wedding_ rings," she finished, hoping he would get the point.

_____ _

Sousuke also blushed deeply.

_____ _

" _Oh._ I see..." he said.

_____ _

She scowled. Was that _all_ he was going to say about it?

_____ _

He swallowed.

_____ _

"I..." he began again.

_____ _

"Yes?" she asked, and leaned forwards a little.

_____ _

"I'm...not _officially_ a Japanese person," he managed to say.

_____ _

She sighed, and sagged a little.

_____ _

"I know that. What does _that_ have to do with it?" she asked.

_____ _

_But wait. Why is he saying that?_ Unless _...but..._

_____ _

She blushed _very_ deeply.

_____ _

"Sousuke..."

_____ _

He swallowed again, then sipped the tea.

_____ _

_Hmmm. It's_ acceptable, he thought, then eyed Kaname over the cup.

_____ _

_What did you do with that stone I gave you?_ he wondered.

_____ _

"Kaname-"

_____ _

His cell phone rang from a pants pocket, and he scowled as Kaname jerked.

_____ _

"Is it work?" she asked him half-seriously.

_____ _

The scowl deepened, then he shook his head as he put the cup down then took the phone out.

_____ _

_I suppose I deserve that she said it in that way,_ he thought.

_____ _

"This is a new cell phone. I haven't given the number to anyone yet-" he began, then his eyebrows went up. "Ah. It's Tessa."

_____ _

" _Huh?_ " Kaname jerked again, and her eyes flashed with a bit of jealousy.

_____ _

"I'm not surprised that _she_ knows the number," she muttered.

_____ _

_And it sounds weird that you called her 'Tessa' instead of 'Captain' or 'ma'am',_ she thought.

_____ _

Sousuke scowled again, then answered the call.

_____ _

_We_ really _need to talk, Kaname,_ he thought.

_____ _

"Yes, ma'am - excuse me. How are you, Tessa?"

_____ _

Kaname watched as he listened for about fifteen seconds, alternatively frowning and nodding, before glancing at her, resuming the frowning and nodding for a few more seconds, then returning at least some of his attention to the conversation.

_____ _

_I wonder what that's about. But should I be listening to this conversation?_

_____ _

"Um..." she said, then looked away. She hadn't intended to say anything.

_____ _

Damn _it. I don't want him to think - but he's not paying attention to me anyway. It's all about_ her _again -_ Stop _that! They used to work together, I mean, they both worked for Mithril, and she's_ my _friend, too._

_____ _

But wasn't it rude that she was hearing any part of their conversation?

_____ _

_Do you think I don't trust you? But it's fine! Excuse yourself, go into another room - no, ah, wait! This is my apartment! Ahhh, this is_ ridiculous.

_____ _

But he hadn't excused himself when he was on the phone with someone - no, with someone from _Mithril_ , because those were the only calls that she could remember him getting.

_____ _

_I'd always be standing right there. But why did he let me?_

_____ _

A devious thought made her eyes twinkle briefly.

_____ _

_Ha ha, Sergeant Sousuke Sagara, I know your deep-est, dark-est see-crets! ___

_______ _ _ _

Then she frowned.

_______ _ _ _

_What good does that do for me?_ she wondered.

_______ _ _ _

Sousuke suddenly looked at her again, and raised an eyebrow - did he know what she was thinking? - she couldn't tell - then lowered the eyebrow and again returned his attention to the conversation.

_______ _ _ _

Or so it appeared.

_______ _ _ _

_Is she going to hold me for ransom?_ he wondered, and his imagination carried on with that for a bit before he remembered that he was still in a phone conversation with Tessa.

_______ _ _ _

_But if you take me somewhere, Kaname, would you_ have _to bring me back?_ he wondered.

_______ _ _ _

He cleared his throat before he spoke again.

_______ _ _ _

"Yes, ma'am - I mean _Tessa_ \- I will confirm with Kaname whether or not she will be available, and will immediately inform you with her response. Thank you."

_______ _ _ _

_If she agrees to this, then perhaps she should change those intentions. But I don't understand what _Tessa's_ intentions are,_ he thought, then ended the call.

_______ _ _ _

"What was _that_ about?" Kaname asked him as he put the phone back into the pocket.

_______ _ _ _

"She wants to invite us to tea. What did she mean by that? But she also wants to know if you'll be available within the next few days, so she can prepare for it," he said.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname hadn't been expecting that, and she stammered a bit as she thought about it.

_______ _ _ _

"Uhm, uh, hmm, yeah, okay, sure. I'll be available. But what she means is, we'll sit and drink tea and eat little bites of food while talking about current news events, or something like that. It's a big deal in England. But she'll probably have it here, somewhere. And she'll invite other people, nice people, so we'll all get along with each other. It'll be...nice," she said.

_______ _ _ _

She looked both herself and Sousuke over.

_______ _ _ _

"But we'll have to _look_ nice, too. I don't think she wants us to look formal. Probably...more like we're going to work," she added.

_______ _ _ _

"No problem," Sousuke said, then glanced at his watch and frowned.

_______ _ _ _

"It's later than I thought...I should go home. I have to start properly outfitting the apartment in the morning, and that will take some time...I won't be able to see you before tomorrow afternoon," he said.

_______ _ _ _

Her mouth opened, but no sound came out for a few seconds.

_______ _ _ _

__He's_ leaving? _He_ can't_ leave! We just got back together! We're supposed to making up for all the time we were apart! she thought.

______ _ _

"Wait, _what?_ " she finally managed to ask.

______ _ _

He stood up, hurried over to her, and stuck out a hand; when she took it, he gently eased her into standing, pulled her close with one hand, then kissed her more deeply than he had at the school but for only a few seconds.

______ _ _

As she fought the sudden urge to swoon, he moved a hand to stroke her face.

______ _ _

"I promise to make it up to you. We didn't spend enough time together today, and we have a _lot_ of catching up to do," he said softly.

______ _ _

It was a nice and unintentionally romantic thing to say, and she involuntarily sniffled.

______ _ _

"Sousuke..." she whispered.

______ _ _

He stole a kiss, then gently released her, but the loss of his warmth and strength made her slip back down into her chair.

______ _ _

"I'll let myself out," he said, then proceeded to do that.

______ _ _

But he stopped at the door, and showed her a suddenly furiously blushing face.

______ _ _

"Kaname."

______ _ _

"Uh, yes?"

______ _ _

His mouth worked, but finally he said it: "I meant what I said...I'm not leaving you. And I...I love you."

______ _ _

She could only smile at him through a sudden veil of tears.

______ _ _

But the smile became touched with amusement when he abruptly turned, then fumbled with the door handle for a few seconds before finally remembering how to unlock then open the door.

______ _ _

But as the door closed behind him, she remembered that she was now alone in the apartment, and the smile faded away.

______ _ _

She'd wanted him to spend the night with her. Not specifically _with her_ , but in the apartment, so that they could finally be together after so long apart. And so that she could see his face in the morning and know it was real.

______ _ _

But it wasn't a dream, was it? That he'd held her, and they'd spent time together, and they'd...

______ _ _

She sniffled, then irritatedly wiped the tears away.

______ _ _

_Say it, Kaname!_ she scolded herself, then firmly nodded.

______ _ _

"We...kissed."

______ _ _

She hugged herself as various feelings seemed to float throughout her.

______ _ _

Scary ones. Beautiful ones. An entire worldfull's worth.

______ _ _

She didn't want to analyse any of these feelings right now. She just wanted them to be together. Wherever it was. Right now.

______ _ _

She missed him more now than she had when they'd been apart.

______ _ _

No one had told her that love could be like that. Could make one feel so lonely when the other wasn't present and even worse when the other wasn't present but was within reach.

______ _ _

But she wouldn't have listened, would she?

______ _ _

She understood now, though. Why the touches of parting couples lingered after they were supposed to let each other go. Why, in movies and television shows, women fell to their knees and strained to reach their lovers and, as men watched their beloveds leave or be taken away, their anger would boil within them before they released it by punching something.

______ _ _

She hadn't ever wanted to behave like that for anyone.

______ _ _

Because love let one down. Love left one stranded.

______ _ _

_Men_ left.

______ _ _

Shunya Chidori hadn't been at his wife's side when she had lost her battle with cancer.

______ _ _

And he had taken both Chidori and her sister Ayame to New York not too long afterwards.

______ _ _

Perhaps, also, he was running away from Shizu's family's disapproval of her choice of husband.

______ _ _

But was that disapproval also the reason that they, too, hadn't been at her side?

______ _ _

Kaname had been in that hospital, had seen how her mother was affected... _She_ had been told of Shizu's passing...she had held her sister's hand...

______ _ _

_She'd_ had to be the strong one in her family.

______ _ _

Her father had shown her that no matter how much a woman loved a man, he could abandon her, for whatever reason.

______ _ _

And that had affected Chidori's relationship with him, made her years in New York even more turbulent.

______ _ _

She had come back to Japan to make it by herself, without trusting anyone.

______ _ _

Especially not any men.

______ _ _

And now, here she was, in love.

______ _ _

And lonely.

______ _ _

" _Damn_ it."

______ _ _

Could she take Sousuke's promise to stay with her as fact?

______ _ _

And after they had that necessary conversation, once he understood the reasons for her stand on certain issues, would he still stand by that promise?

______ _ _

Her heart believed that he would. Sousuke was loyal, strong and honest.

______ _ _

But she would never forget how deserted she had felt on that terrible day.

______ _ _

She winced, then shook her head as though to clear it.

______ _ _

" _Ah._ I can't stay like this all night. I wonder if he moved back into that apartment?"

______ _ _

She got up and hurried to see if any of the lights were on in that apartment.

______ _ _

One was, and she smiled as she saw him moving to and fro in the room that it illuminated.

______ _ _

"Sousuke..."

______ _ _

She wanted to run to him, and he would let her in. But _then_ what? If he kept things as sparse as he had then, at the moment the only furniture he had was probably a bed to sleep in - if that much.

______ _ _

_He probably couldn't even offer me a cup of tea._

______ _ _

No. She would be welcomed there, but it wasn't a good time. Not yet.

______ _ _

"I can be without you for one more night. I've done it up till now, haven't I? It'll be harder to do that now, because you're right over there again, but I can do it. But, Sousuke..."

______ _ _

She sighed, then stood up to clean up.

______ _ _

"The next time you tell me how you feel about me, let's be on a real date, or something like that. Okay?"

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~At a church...?~

______ _ _

A lightly perspiring Sousuke swallowed, then adjusted his shirt collar, then his tie.

______ _ _

Then he dreamily smiled up at the view of the clear mid-afternoon sky via a ceiling window.

______ _ _

It was a beautiful day for the wedding.

______ _ _

Sousuke had made sure of that himself along with doing most of the other preparations, leaving little for Kaname to take care of except for the guest list and choosing the dress, and his hand had been involved in these too - he'd limited the dress selections to what he somehow knew she would like, and he'd made adjustments to the guest list until _he_ was satisfied.

______ _ _

He wasn't a mercenary any more, but the training remained, as did Kaname's frustration with his strict attention to details (not to mention limiting her role); she'd yelled at him and also whacked him with an assortment of objects, but his methodicalness hadn't budged. And he'd always disarmed any further punishment with a sincere "But I want everything to be perfect."

______ _ _

"But what about the honeymoon?" she'd blushingly all but whispered when it was obvious that he hadn't made any arrangements for this.

______ _ _

"The _what?_ "

______ _ _

So much for "perfect". But so not to throw him completely off-course, she'd recovered from her embarrassment and firmly made suggestions that he'd blushingly promised would be followed through on.

______ _ _

And now all the efforts were being realised.

______ _ _

He was officially "Sousuke Sagara, a Japanese national". Affirmative, with the rapid assistance of some friends and other "contacts".

______ _ _

There was no alcohol within ten miles of this location. Affirmative, although the eyes of certain guests - this included Melissa Mao, Kurz Weber, and some of the other fellow survivors of the last series of battles - were practically burning holes into his back for this.

______ _ _

Jerome Borda, Tessa, Richard Mardukas, Michael Lemon and Wraith - in that order - were seated as comfortably as was possible being almost literally surrounded by a protective detail. Affirmative.

______ _ _

Tessa looked uncomfortable, which was understandable as her heart hadn't completely let go of him yet. But she had come here, although for Kaname, with whom she was still friends.

______ _ _

_I'm sorry, Tessa._

______ _ _

But if he said that to her at any time this day, she might nod, or wave this aside, then say something like, "It's all right. Proceed, Mr. Sagara." Then she would remember that she wasn't his commanding officer any longer, blush a little, then say: "I _mean, Sousuke._ "

______ _ _

He sighed a little, then continued with his mental checklist.

______ _ _

Friends and their family members, co-workers past and present, and a few associates were also comfortably seated. Affirmative.

______ _ _

The attendants to the groom were anxiously shifting about, uncomfortable in their formal attire and wanting this major event to start, already. Affirmative.

______ _ _

The attendants to the bride had stopped fussing and crying and were ready to participate. Affirmative, according to the confirmation he was receiving via his cordless headset.

______ _ _

And also according to some of the other information he was receiving, the food would be ready on time.

______ _ _

He frowned as he thought of the "adequate" security that he'd arranged for this ceremony. He'd wanted _excellent_ protective measures, but with forced patience Kaname had told him that his idea of "excellent" security would bring definitely unwanted attention to this location. Then she'd threatened to deep-fry him and serve him to the guests, and he didn't want her to follow through on _that._

______ _ _

He couldn't help it. He'd thrown away his weapons, but not his training.

______ _ _

And he knew he would need every bit of it for what awaited him.

______ _ _

But he wouldn't have it any other way.

______ _ _

_But I_ would _like it if she stopped hitting me._

______ _ _

The priest gave him a reassuring smile, but this only made him perspire more, blush, and adjust his tie and collar again.

______ _ _

_It's too hot. It's too hot. It's too_ damned _hot in here,_ he thought.

______ _ _

The pre-recorded wedding march music, this version played by a brass-and-strings dominated military band, suddenly began to play from hidden speakers, and he reflexively began to salute before realising what he was doing and lowering the hand while scowling.

______ _ _

_I did that during the rehearsals. She chose it on_ purpose, he thought.

______ _ _

" _Damn_ it, Sousuke, _relax_ ," Ono-D shakily whispered from his left side.

______ _ _

Somewhere on his right-hand side, Shinji nervously used a palm to restrain a chuckle. When he removed his hand, he accidentally snorted, then blushed before squeaking an apology.

______ _ _

" _Quiet,_ " Shunya Chidori hissed from closer to Sousuke's right.

______ _ _

Sousuke felt a sudden rude poke in his upper back, between his shoulder blades. He winced, then became irritated, then forced himself to calm down.

______ _ _

_That was what it was for,_ he thought.

______ _ _

The priest cleared his throat, then gently raised his chin.

______ _ _

Sousuke swallowed again, then turned to look at the _real_ reason for all of the efforts that had been made for this day.

______ _ _

And saw Gauron grinning maniacally at him from the the back row.

______ _ _

_No._

______ _ _

It was _impossible._

______ _ _

Sousuke's heart seemed to jump a mile before settling back in place. Then his anger rose and he forgot where he was.

______ _ _

"What the hell are you doing here, you son of a bitch?!" he demanded to know as he made his way towards the fiend - who was now also waving and also bobbing his head from side to side - easily freeing himself from restraining grips and grasps and ignoring pleas to come back.

______ _ _

"Doesn't matter. I'll kill you again! As many times as I have to, you got that?!" he commanded rather than said.

______ _ _

Gauron finally spoke.

______ _ _

"You can't get rid of me yet, Kashim!"

______ _ _

He blew long, wet, sloppy kisses at Sousuke, who restrained his disgust at this as he continued to move towards him.

______ _ _

"First, I'm going to kill allll of your friends, and rip your precious little bitch's head off, and stick it right up her ass as I cut _yours_ off! _And I don't mean_ your _head!_ " 

______ _ _

He laughed maniacally.

______ _ _

" _Then_ we'll die together, Kashim! You and me. How it's _meant_ to be. We'll be together forever! Oh, won't it be romantic?"

______ _ _

Sousuke had had enough. His self-restraint broke, and he ran the rest of the way, quickly mentally examining many ways of bare-handedly killing Gauron before settling on a very brutal few.

______ _ _

"Kaname, look away! I don't want you to see this."

______ _ _

"Sousuke..."

______ _ _

Her voice, soft, close to his right ear.

______ _ _

Then her hand, even softer, against his cheek.

______ _ _

"I love you. And I understand. But-"

______ _ _

"NO. I'm not losing you again. Even if you run away. I'll follow you wherever you go. And I'll do whatever it takes. Even if we _don't_ get married we're always going to be together. You got that?"

______ _ _

"I-"

______ _ _

"That was an _order_ , Chidori, not a question!" 

______ _ _

He could feel her anger rising, and restrained a grin.

______ _ _

_That's my Kaname._

______ _ _

"What the - who the _HELL_ do you think you're talking to like that! You can't order _ME_ around, you - you-"

______ _ _

He prepared for it, and soon it came - he felt her forearm fast and hard on his back, and he was knocked onto his face.

______ _ _

And then she berated him in a wild flurry of increasingly heated sentences before he heard her stomping away as loudly and quickly as her heels would permit, with Kyouko's and other female voices close to her, begging her to go back to him.

______ _ _

Sousuke grinned despite his predicament, stood up and brushed himself off.

______ _ _

Then he turned to look at the priest.

______ _ _

But...wait. Where was Gauron?

______ _ _

The priest's jaw was dropped. Then he recovered, and heaved a long, slow sigh.

______ _ _

Sousuke briefly and uncharacteristically grinned sheepishly. Then he apologised, bowed, turned around and chased after Kaname.

______ _ _

"I don't want anything to do with you any more, Sousuke!" she yelled.

______ _ _

"If that was true, you wouldn't say so!" he yelled back.

______ _ _

_You're running because you know you can't get away from me._

______ _ _

_"HAH!"_

______ _ _

Sousuke's eyebrows went up.

______ _ _

_Did she hear that?_

______ _ _

But that didn't matter.

______ _ _

"It's not a problem!"

______ _ _

" _SHUTUP!_ "

______ _ _

He just grinned.

______ _ _

_It doesn't matter. We'll always be together._

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~Sousuke's barely-furnished bedroom~

______ _ _

He gasped, jerked out of sleep, automatically checked himself out for injuries, looked at his watch - it was a little past seven a.m. - then looked around the room until he was certain where he was.

______ _ _

" _That's_ how it's meant to be," he said softly.

______ _ _

But... _a wedding?_

______ _ _

Likely prompted by the events regarding the jewellery store, for some reason his subconscious had collected these ideas into an _almost_ believable dream.

______ _ _

But his abilities did not include coordinating the procedures necessary for the successful execution of a wedding ceremony. He hadn't been to one either. All he had were vaguely informed ideas.

______ _ _

Sousuke frowned as he felt a very serious blush rush over his face, and absentmindedly brushed suddenly very sweaty hands on the mattress - he hadn't bothered to cover it with bed linens.

______ _ _

Did Kaname want a wedding?

______ _ _

But wasn't his promise to stay by her side enough?

______ _ _

_She was very uncomfortable when she talked about the jewellery store,_ he thought.

______ _ _

He didn't understand, and he didn't know who to ask for advice about this situation.

______ _ _

_Kurz? No. He and Mao are..._

______ _ _

He scowled, but the blush deepened even more anyway.

______ _ _

_...possibly, discussing their own situation._

______ _ _

And he certainly couldn't ask Kalinin, who had seemingly turned traitor even to the one he had treated as a son.

______ _ _

_In the end, you just wanted that ridiculous dream for yourself,_ he thought.

______ _ _

The scowl deepened.

______ _ _

_If you had asked Kaname,_ would _you have killed her if she hadn't wanted to join that make-believe world, with me, or by herself? And as Sophia, she was like Leonard, more concerned about her own feelings. And you, you never asked me how_ I _felt about it. You were just as selfish._

______ _ _

He softly sighed.

______ _ _

_Maybe you really did care about me. But for what? Regardless of your true intentions, you weren't my "father" when you stood in my way. Testing me, mocking me, knowing that I wouldn't be able to kill you._

______ _ _

Something else had taken Kalinin's life, which Sousuke hadn't known until the man had finally fallen.

______ _ _

To the end, he had been tough.

______ _ _

_"Go. Live..."_ he had said before he'd died, repeating the last words of Sousuke's mother.

______ _ _

Sousuke winced and roughly wiped sudden tears away with the back of a hand.

______ _ _

"Was that supposed to redeem you?" he asked.

______ _ _

He uncharacteristically shuddered as his mind and body, denied the suffering of the loss, finally realised its weight, but instead of memories of Kalinin, what came to him instead was a vision of _her_ eyes and _her_ smile.

______ _ _

He sagged a little.

______ _ _

" _Kaname..._ " he whispered.

______ _ _

He knew his plans for this day. But he needed her now, had to be with her even if that meant being hit with whatever she had in hand, be it a fan, newspaper or magazine, or even the hand itself.

______ _ _

He could withstand whatever she did as long as he could hold her.

______ _ _

Just as she put up with him, he could put up with her.

______ _ _

That was how partnerships worked, wasn't it? The best and the worst in constant compromise with each other.

______ _ _

He, Kurz and Mao had worked well together despite their differences, and there was a kind of friendship present between them.

______ _ _

But Kaname was...more. He couldn't quite describe it, but...

______ _ _

_I want to see you. So, a slight change of plan._

______ _ _

...That didn't matter right now. He was going to prepare for the morning, make arrangements to get her a new cell phone, give it to her himself before he set out, then-

______ _ _

" _Damn it._ I forgot to call Tessa."

______ _ _

He got off the mattress, walked over to where he had placed his clothing for this day, then scowled and prepared to change one of the items.

______ _ _

Someone knocked on the door, and he reached for a weapon that wasn't there.

______ _ _

" _Shit._ " 

______ _ _

_Maybe it's Tessa to evaluate my condition. Or it could be Kurz or Mao. Or another comrade._

______ _ _

After a short pause, the knocking came again and this time harder, and he grinned softly as he recognised it.

______ _ _

" _Sousuke._ Hurry up! I brought you something to eat."

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~Some time later, in a glamourous hotel bedroom~

______ _ _

A phone rang from somewhere within the mess of bedsheets that was so tangled that the mattress could be seen here and there.

______ _ _

Also from within this mess there was an irritated woman's groan, then a muttered curse, then short and sharp movements that were followed by a soft thump and a dull-sounding male groan.

______ _ _

" _Damn_ it, Kurz - _MOVE_ ," Melissa's voice said with some effort.

______ _ _

A few seconds later, the ringing was replaced by a _beep_ , the bedsheet-mess shifted this way and that, and finally a very messy-haired but wide awake Melissa emerged, holding a cell phone to her right ear while the other hand kept her apparently bare chest covered with part of one of the bedsheets. 

______ _ _

"Yes, hello?" she said with a touch of irritation.

______ _ _

"Whozit?" Kurz's voice sleepily asked from the area of her right knee.

______ _ _

"Will you _shutup?_ " Melissa ordered.

______ _ _

"Such a _bitch_ this morning," Kurz said more clearly, as though Melissa's command had made him more alert. 

______ _ _

Melissa grimaced, then switched the phone to her other ear.

______ _ _

" _Argh._ I'm sorry. It's not a good morning. Huh? What? Uh - haha, hahahaha..."

______ _ _

_It's_ his _fault! He still doesn't know when to shutup. "Nee-san. Nee-san. Meh-lisssaaah."_ Shit.

______ _ _

"-ah? Oh, right, right, yeah."

______ _ _

She blushed slightly as her mind was brought back to the conversation.

______ _ _

"So everything's...yeah. Huh? Not _yet?_ Well, it's still too early for that - no. No. I got a special invitation, so I can't. Yeah. _Her._ "

______ _ _

She scowled and sagged.

______ _ _

"Yeah, _him too._ I didn't want to-"

______ _ _

" _Hey!_ " Kurz protested. "Don't treat me like a-"

______ _ _

"-but I guess I have to. Yeah, I'll talk to you later," Melissa continued, ignoring Kurz, whose very messy-haired head emerged from the sheets so he could glare at her.

______ _ _

" _Bitch,_ " he said.

______ _ _

"Go without me, then," she said, then ended the call.

______ _ _

He nodded.

______ _ _

"Yeah. I'll bring someone who _cares_ about me. And you can bring some _chump_ who'll tell you all the things you want to hear. Like,"

______ _ _

He saluted her.

______ _ _

"Oh YES ma'am, whatever you _say_ , ma'am, I'll follow you around like a lost puppy, ma'am, bow wow, woof-woof - _OW!_ "

______ _ _

She lightly hit him on the head with the cell phone, and he pouted and covered the area with the hand that had saluted her.

______ _ _

" _IDIOT!_ " she said, then untangled herself, bounced out of the bed, strode into the nearby bathroom and slammed the door shut.

______ _ _

He glared at the door.

______ _ _

"I know what you're gonna do in there, so why bother to close the door?!" he asked.

______ _ _

She gasped with embarrassment.

______ _ _

"Sh- _SHUTUP!_ " she said.

______ _ _

His eyes narrowed.

______ _ _

"You shouldn't leave _that_ kind of trash laying around-"

______ _ _

"Kurz, if you don't shut up _right now,_ I _swear_ I'll-"

______ _ _

"How long do you have to wait _this_ time?"

______ _ _

"You-"

______ _ _

And then there was silence.

______ _ _

After a few seconds, Kurz exhaled, then untangled himself and wrapped one of the bedsheets around his body.

______ _ _

"I'm going to get dressed in _my_ bathroom. Then I'll check out a few things. Like cute girls," he said.

______ _ _

" _Kurz,_ " Melissa said warningly, but it lacked force.

______ _ _

He shrugged, then got off of the bed.

______ _ _

"You said it last night. But you didn't need to. Stop playing around, Melissa. I want more than this. And I know you do too."

______ _ _

"Kurz..." This time it was said with tired resignation, but he shook his head and walked towards an open door.

______ _ _

"I'll see you later," he said.

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~The hotel room's nicely appointed bathroom~

______ _ _

Melissa grimaced, then carefully took a pregnancy-test strip kit out of a plain white paper bag and placed both next to the cell phone, which was on the counter next to the sink, .

______ _ _

_He's too damned smart. That's why..._

______ _ _

She walked over to the sink, placed her hands on either edge of it and looked in the mirror.

______ _ _

_And he's a smartass, a jerk, a joker, unstable, and a pain in the ass._ Deliberately _a pain in the ass._

______ _ _

"Uh! Gah..."

______ _ _

There were bite marks, scratches, bruises and some "rug burns" all over her body.

______ _ _

"Why were we like that..."

______ _ _

But sex with Kurz was easy because indulging lust wasn't complicated. And they were two _very_ consenting adults who really wanted each other.

______ _ _

It was the _need_ that was the trouble.

______ _ _

Kurz was right. It wasn't fair for her to treat him as though he was a mere convenience.

______ _ _

But he didn't understand that she needed to keep him at a distance. It was the only way to keep things "safe."

______ _ _

When he was serious, she _almost_ wanted to be suitable for him. In that way, he threatened to interfere with the control that she had over her life.

______ _ _

And when he was a jerk, she wanted to kill him or at least hurt him very, very badly, but at least then she could really deal with him.

______ _ _

It was unacceptable, and his growing impatience with their one step forward-two steps back situation meant that soon he'd decide it wasn't worth it for him. And then, he might meet someone willing to give him everything...

______ _ _

"So _what._ I don't care. It's too damned stressful!"

______ _ _

But the test-kit was still in her hand.

______ _ _

She sighed for a few long seconds, then opened it.

______ _ _

_Why does he make me act like a bitch? He's such an ass. But...I do love him. I just can't tell him. It'll make things worse. We're all dealing with enough shit as it is._

______ _ _

She winced.

______ _ _

_If this time, it's "Yes"...I don't know what I'm going to do. But I'll have to tell him eventually. And I'm afraid of what_ he'll _do._

______ _ _

She tossed the instructions aside.

______ _ _

_Damn it. I won't accept it if he asks me to marry him. I_ WON'T. _That's just too much._

______ _ _

" _Damn_ it, let's just get this over and done with."

______ _ _

But her shaking hands belied her verbal confidence, and she nearly dropped the "strip".

______ _ _

" _Damn it!_ "

______ _ _

She sat on the toilet and tried to calm herself by breathing slowly.

______ _ _

Inhale...exhale...Inhale...exhale...In...out...

______ _ _

The cell phone rang again, and she glared at it.

______ _ _

"You're just too freaking smart, _aren't_ you?!" she yelled.

______ _ _

She answered the call anyway.

______ _ _

"Haven't you finished _yet?_ Get your ass down here, I'm gonna order some of your favourites!" Kurz said against a background of conversations and clinking table- and glassware.

______ _ _

She rolled her eyes and waited.

______ _ _

"Or is it too sore?" he wanted to know.

______ _ _

She blushed and got mad because of it.

______ _ _

"SHUTUP!" she yelled.

______ _ _

"Ohhh, _scary._ " But he wasn't afraid.

______ _ _

She exhaled deeply. Didn't the idiot know when to be afraid?

______ _ _

He continued with: "Well, they've got beer too, so that'll put you in a better-"

______ _ _

She groaned.

______ _ _

"It's too early for that!" she shouted.

______ _ _

" _Early?_ Nee-san, it's a little past noon. You could at least be happy that I let you sleep late."

______ _ _

And she could just see him grinning with pride over his "accomplishment."

______ _ _

That did it. She was going to _kill_ him.

______ _ _

" _Argh, you-_ Ah, _never mind!_ "

______ _ _

She ended the call, jumped up, then stormed out of the bathroom to prepare herself for what might at least make the rest of this day enjoyable.

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~On a park bench~

______ _ _

Kyouko stared wide-eyed at the blushing and hunch-shouldering Kaname in disbelief.

______ _ _

"You...gave him _plain steamed vegetables and noodles_ for breakfast...and he _ate_ it?" she asked.

______ _ _

Kaname nodded, then straightened her posture.

______ _ _

"It was the only thing that I could give him to eat," she said softly.

______ _ _

Kyouko sighed, then shook her head slowly.

______ _ _

"Take him with you the next time you go shopping, then he can pick up what he wants," she said.

______ _ _

" _Eh?"_

______ _ _

Kaname jerked.

______ _ _

"Are you _kidding?_

_____If I didn't stop him, he'd do something stupid like pick up two juice containers and see if they weighed exactly the same. Then he'd put one back, pick up another one and do the same thing. Over and over again-"_ _ _ _ _

_______ _ _ _

"But you'd stop him," Kyouko interrupted.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname nodded, then scowled, and the blush began to fade.

_______ _ _ _

"Yeah, I'd stop him," she agreed.

_______ _ _ _

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko shook her head slowly again.

_______ _ _ _

"But he'll eat whatever you make for him anyway-" she began.

_______ _ _ _

" _EH?_ " Kaname interrupted, then blushed again.

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko frowned thoughtfully.

_______ _ _ _

"Because he trusts you, and it's like...being home, I guess," she said.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname scowled.

_______ _ _ _

"Eating my cooking is _not_ like being home," she said firmly.

_______ _ _ _

"Kana, it's not a dream. You two are together."

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko looked at the sky.

_______ _ _ _

"Hmmm, and you might get married one-"

_______ _ _ _

Kaname gasped, then jumped up.

_______ _ _ _

"Ha ha, haaa, don't say something like that. It's, it's - and he's not even a real Japanese person, I mean, uh..."

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko looked at her with twinkling eyes.

_______ _ _ _

"Even if you _don't_ get married, he's never going to leave you. But I think you two _will_ get married. Or you might elope."

_______ _ _ _

She clasped her hands together.

_______ _ _ _

" _Ahhhh,_ that's so _romantic!_ And you'll run away to some deserted island..."

_______ _ _ _

Kaname scowled at her.

_______ _ _ _

"Your imagination is _really_ -"

_______ _ _ _

A ringing phone interrupted her, and both of the young women looked at the front right pockets of their jeans. It was soon realised that it was from Kaname's pocket, and she slipped her new cell phone - received after a ten-minute wait after a two-minute phone call that Sousuke had made after he'd eaten - out of the pocket.

_______ _ _ _

"Oooh, is that-" Kyouko began.

_______ _ _ _

"No, it's my boss, calling me back."

_______ _ _ _

This phone had more features than her previous one, some of which she hadn't figured out yet, but she knew that it had a GPS function because Sousuke had briefly taken it away from her to turn it on.

_______ _ _ _

_She could have protested about this _exact_ need to know where she was, but considering what had happened over the past year..._

______ _ _

_But wouldn't hiding something like that in_ jewellery _be better? Like a necklace...or a...ring..._

______ _ _

She cleared her throat.

______ _ _

...something she could "forget" to put on.

______ _ _

_Ahhh, he'd never allow that. But for the wrong reasons!_

______ _ _

She blushed again, then quickly answered the call.

______ _ _

"Ahhhh, good afternoon, yes..."

______ _ _

But her imagination wasn't done with this yet; it placed a vision of Sousuke gently sliding a ring onto her finger that of course was more functional than beautiful.

______ _ _

_"Kaname, will you accept this form of protection from me?"_

______ _ _

_Ridiculous!_

______ _ _

Kaname scowled, and blinked this away.

______ _ _

"Ahhh...yes. I understand...of course. I'm sorry for making you wait so long. Yes, yes. Thank you."

______ _ _

She sagged, then ended the call.

______ _ _

"What is it?" a now-concerned Kyouko asked.

______ _ _

Kaname's body trembled as she now had a vision of pushing an overstuffed suitcase down a line of head-shaking landlords.

______ _ _

_If I don't get a new job soon..._

______ _ _

"I don't have a job any more," she said sadly.

______ _ _

Kyouko frowned.

______ _ _

" _Kana..._ "

______ _ _

Kaname suddenly clenched her empty hand into a fist.

______ _ _

"But I'm _not_ going to ask him to help me. This is _my_ problem."

______ _ _

"But, Kana-"

______ _ _

"I'm a hard worker. I'll get a job soon."

______ _ _

Kyouko sighed.

______ _ _

"But you two have to take that test, so when are you going to start looking?"

______ _ _

"Eh-"

______ _ _

Kaname froze in place for a few seconds, then sagged.

______ _ _

"But if I don't start working soon..."

______ _ _

"Do you want to come over later? I could help you catch up."

______ _ _

Kaname winced, then shook her head.

______ _ _

"No. I don't want you to cancel your date."

______ _ _

Kyouko blushed.

______ _ _

"We're just going to see a movie..."

______ _ _

"Uh- _huh._ "

______ _ _

Kaname showed her a devious smile.

______ _ _

Have you two... _kissed_ yet?"

______ _ _

Kyouko gasped, then blushed deeper.

______ _ _

" _Kana!_ It's not like that! And that's not fair."

______ _ _

Kaname got serious, then nodded.

______ _ _

"You're right. That was mean. I'm sorry. But I shouldn't come over now. I still have to settle back in, and..."

______ _ _

She looked at the sky.

______ _ _

Kyouko followed her gaze.

______ _ _

"Kana."

______ _ _

"Yeah?"

______ _ _

Kyouko looked at her seriously.

______ _ _

"You know he'll do anything to help you. So, ask him."

______ _ _

"But-"

______ _ _

Kaname looked at Kyouko.

______ _ _

"It's _my_ problem."

______ _ _

" _Kana,_ you're his _partner._ "

______ _ _

"But I-"

______ _ _

But Kyouko was right. Knowing how to define relationships only in militaristic terms, Sousuke didn't quite understand the concept of "romantic couples". He understood deals and compromises, that there was give and take in whatever amounts were necessary to attain peace, and that mutual trust was necessary to maintain them.

______ _ _

This meant that the more mutual trust he had with someone, the deeper his stubborn dedication would be to maintain and protect that trust.

______ _ _

_"I meant what I said...I'm not leaving you. And I...I love you."_

______ _ _

So he did indeed regard Kaname as his partner.

______ _ _

That imaginary functional ring suddenly changed into a gorgeous creation of diamonds set on a gold band, and she gasped before recovering and becoming indignant.

______ _ _

_It's stupid, absolutely ridiculous, to be thinking such a thing!_

______ _ _

But she couldn't help it. Wasn't it normal for a girl to have thoughts about marrying the man she loved?

______ _ _

_But this is SOUSUKE. And he's not normal at all!_

______ _ _

"Grrrr...."

______ _ _

"Kana? What's wrong?"

______ _ _

Kaname looked at her phone.

______ _ _

"If he was a _normal_ person, I wouldn't be having so much trouble."

______ _ _

"Huh? What do you mean?"

______ _ _

"You're right. I _am_ his partner. And that gives me the right to give him a piece of my mind!"

______ _ _

Now "inspired" to call Sousuke, Kaname began to dial his number as Kyouko sagged a little.

______ _ _

" _Again?_ " Kyouko asked listlessly.

______ _ _

Kaname suddenly scowled.

______ _ _

"He's not answering...ah, his message...Yeah! Sousuke! Where are you? Are you doing something _crazy_ again?"

______ _ _

Kyouko sighed again.

______ _ _

"You can't just say you miss him, huh."

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~In a deserted warehouse parking lot~

______ _ _

With raised eyebrows, Sousuke listened to Kaname's message as he slid down the back door of a van.

______ _ _

_So, we're back to_ that _, are we?_

______ _ _

But as he ended the voicemail-call, slid his phone into a pocket and then began to lock the door down, he suddenly smiled.

______ _ _

_But I miss you, too._

______ _ _

And unlike before, he could go right to her.

______ _ _

"I'll see you soon, my - Kaname."

______ _ _

But right now, he was glad that no one could see him suddenly blushing.

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~Late afternoon, on a couch in the living room of Kyouko's home~

______ _ _

Kaname carefully bent to add a schoolbook to the small assortment of other books on the floor in front of the couch.

______ _ _

"Ah. That's enough for today," she said, then glared at Kyouko, who frowned at her.

______ _ _

"You came here because you would have been bored just sitting at home by yourself," Kyouko said.

______ _ _

Kaname scowled.

______ _ _

"Yeah, but-"

______ _ _

Her cell phone rang, and she blushed as she picked it up from her left side, next to Kyouko's phone.

______ _ _

Kyouko smiled dreamily.

______ _ _

"Ahhh, he's checking up on you," she said.

______ _ _

"Oh, hush."

______ _ _

But it _was_ Sousuke calling, and Kaname's fingers briefly fumbled as she answered the call.

______ _ _

"Hello? Yeah. We just finished some studying...yeah. We missed a _lot._ Do _you_ want to...uh, study with me later?"

______ _ _

Kyouko giggled as the blushing deepened.

______ _ _

"You're acting like you've never been alone with him before," she said.

______ _ _

"It was different then," Kaname whispered.

______ _ _

Kyouko's eyes twinkled again.

______ _ _

"Yeah, it'll be different this time, too-"

______ _ _

" _AHHHH._ No, Sousuke, I didn't mean _you._ "

______ _ _

Kaname briefly glared at Kyouko, who just grinned back at her.

______ _ _

"Can you pick me up _now?_ Kyouko has to get ready for her movie date with Ono-D."

______ _ _

Kyouko frowned.

______ _ _

"Awww, Kana..."

______ _ _

Kaname suddenly scowled.

______ _ _

" _No,_ they're _not_ going to carry electromagnetic - oh. You need a _lot_ more practice telling jokes, Sousuke! Just come pick me up, all right?...Thanks. See you soon."

______ _ _

She sagged, then ended the call.

______ _ _

"He just keeps giving me trouble. And _you-_ "

______ _ _

She glared at Kyouko, whose frown deepened.

______ _ _

"I _should have_ just gone home."

______ _ _

"But Kana..."

______ _ _

That deep frown made Kaname wince.

______ _ _

_I'm being unfair and cruel,_ she thought.

______ _ _

"No...I'm sorry. It's _my_ fault. I guess I'm not ready to catch-up yet. But I wonder...why are you still friends with me?"

______ _ _

Kyouko patted her hand.

______ _ _

"You're a very good person. And a lot of fun. Especially when it comes to Sousuke."

______ _ _

Kaname cringed.

______ _ _

"You know..." she said with a touch of irritation.

______ _ _

Kyouko chuckled, then got serious.

______ _ _

"But _really_ , Kana, you don't give yourself a lot of credit. You're a _great_ person, and I'm proud to be friends with you."

______ _ _

Kaname sniffled.

______ _ _

"Kyouko..."

______ _ _

"You've been through a lot, and you'll tell me everything about it when you're ready. Right?"

______ _ _

Kaname grinned.

______ _ _

"Right! We'll have a sleepover then, okay?"

______ _ _

Kyouko grinned at her.

______ _ _

"Yeah!"

______ _ _

" _Yeah._ So _now,_ " and Kaname got off the couch, "let's get you ready for dinner."

______ _ _

" _Huh? _" Kyouko looked as confused about this as she felt. "What do you mean? It's just-"__

________ _ _ _ _

Kaname gently waved a finger at her.

________ _ _ _ _

"Oh no, no no. You have to look so nice that he can't help _but_ take you out to dinner afterwards," she said.

________ _ _ _ _

Kyouko sighed.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Ka-na_..."

________ _ _ _ _

Kaname playfully batted her eyes, then clasped her fingers together and put them close to her left cheek.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Oh,_ it'll be so _romantic!_ " she teased.

________ _ _ _ _

Kyouko scowled, then thought of something that made her grin a little deviously.

________ _ _ _ _

" _You_ should look nice too, and tell him to help you pick out an outfit before you two start studying," she said.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Huh?_ "

________ _ _ _ _

Then Kaname grinned just as deviously.

________ _ _ _ _

"Let's just make sure that we don't end up at the same restaurant," she said.

________ _ _ _ _

"Ha-ha, no problem."

________ _ _ _ _

"But just to make sure, we'll text each other every ten minutes or so."

________ _ _ _ _

"Yes, ma'am!"

________ _ _ _ _

They playfully saluted each other, then Kaname checked her current physical funds availability and frowned.

________ _ _ _ _

"Hmm, it takes a lot to look fabulous..."

________ _ _ _ _

Kyouko playfully frowned at her.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Hey._ What are you trying to say?" she asked, then put her hands on her hips.

________ _ _ _ _

Kaname grinned as she took out her cell phone.

________ _ _ _ _

"Just kidding...but I want to check my balance anyway."

________ _ _ _ _

Kyouko made a face at her.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Hmph._ But I don't want to look like a model."

________ _ _ _ _

Kaname frowned as she entered the information, then waited.

________ _ _ _ _

"You're cute enough already - _HUH?_ "

________ _ _ _ _

Her jaw dropped, and now worried, Kyouko took a step towards her, but Kaname shook her head.

________ _ _ _ _

"That _has_ to be a mistake...I'll check the transactions..."

________ _ _ _ _

A few seconds later, she froze in place.

________ _ _ _ _

A few seconds after that, her unoccupied hand reflexively reached for a fan that wasn't there.

________ _ _ _ _

_Kyouko, long familiar with that unintended cue, sighed._

_______ _ _ _

"Sousuke?" she softly asked.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname managed a nod.

_______ _ _ _

"He...he..." she managed to say.

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko frowned.

_______ _ _ _

"Are you _sure?_?" she asked.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname's eyes blazed a little.

_______ _ _ _

"Who _else_ could it be?!" she asked, her voice gradually getting louder.

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko's expression became thoughtful.

_______ _ _ _

"Well, then, if it _was_ him, then he _already_ helped you."

_______ _ _ _

"But he...but he...how did he get my account information?! _He did all this behind my back._ He didn't ask me, he didn't say a word! What if...what if he broke the law?!"

_______ _ _ _

The hand became a fist.

_______ _ _ _

"And how did he do it anyway?! Did he ask one of his 'friends' to do it, or did he hack into the system-"

_______ _ _ _

"Calm down. You still don't know if it was him-"

_______ _ _ _

" _I'm giving it back!_ I'm going to take all of it out and shove it in his hands!" 

_______ _ _ _

"No, you're _not!_ "

_______ _ _ _

Shocked out of her building rage because Kyouko rarely raised her voice, and panting a little, Kaname looked at her, the fist lowering.

_______ _ _ _

"Kyouko..."

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko softly exhaled.

_______ _ _ _

"He knows you're strong and stubborn and don't want help. But _if_ he did it, he helped you anyway. Because he really cares about you. And maybe he didn't tell you because you'd give him trouble about it. But since you don't _really_ know if it was him, instead of giving it all back to him, why don't you buy him a present, something that he'd really like?"

_______ _ _ _

"But..."

_______ _ _ _

"He does his best to keep his promises. Yeah, he's clumsy and socially awkward, but he's loyal to the people he cares about, and he's kind. You said that yourself. And you know what? I trust him."

_______ _ _ _

Kaname winced and looked away.

_______ _ _ _

"Yeah, I know. But..."

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko frowned.

_______ _ _ _

"He's not like other guys. Give him a chance. He deserves that much at least."

_______ _ _ _

"I..."

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko didn't say anything more for a few seconds. Then she suddenly grinned.

_______ _ _ _

"Come on. He'll be here soon, right? So let's hurry up and make me look nice," she said.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname hesitated, then looked at her, nodded, then grinned.

_______ _ _ _

"Okay. Let's do this!"

_______ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

_______ _ _ _

~Twenty minutes later~

_______ _ _ _

They came back carrying two large shopping bags each, then Kyouko took one of Kaname's bags and hurried to her bedroom with the three while Kaname sat on the couch and examined the contents of the last bag.

_______ _ _ _

"Oh, Kyouko, you're going to look so _cute!_ " she said to herself.

_______ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

_______ _ _ _

Sousuke arrived ten minutes and three seconds later, and his nose twitched and his eyebrows went up as Kaname opened the door.

_______ _ _ _

_Women's perfume? But she hasn't applied it to herself..._ he thought.

_______ _ _ _

She scowled at him, stepped aside so he could enter, then looked a little embarrassed when he looked at the lipstick "test smudges" on the inside of her right wrist.

_______ _ _ _

"It's not war paint, you know..." she said.

_______ _ _ _

His eyebrows went back down.

_______ _ _ _

"I know. And-"

_______ _ _ _

Her eyes narrowed a little.

_______ _ _ _

" _How_ do you know?" she asked a little suspiciously.

_______ _ _ _

His eyebrows went back up, and he looked a little surprised that she would wonder how he knew about lipstick.

_______ _ _ _

"Sometimes, some of the women on the _de Danaan_ -"

_______ _ _ _

"Ah. Never mind. I have to clean up a little, check on Kyouko, then we can go, all right? I won't be long, but you can sit if you want to."

_______ _ _ _

He nodded.

_______ _ _ _

"Okay."

_______ _ _ _

He watched her walk away, and caught himself paying more than his usual cursory attention to the way her hair moved under the light that was coming in through a nearby window.

_______ _ _ _

But that wasn't quite the right description.

_______ _ _ _

Her hair was moving the light throughout itself, creating a glow, and unless he was mistaken that same glow was surrounding her, as though she was emanating it.

_______ _ _ _

He restrained the urge to rush over to see the glow flowing over his fingers.

_______ _ _ _

_Kaname..._

_______ _ _ _

He'd already known that she was a physically perfect female, and that her mental strength was not easily broken.

_______ _ _ _

But for too long the filter of his training had applied that knowledge to whether or not she could be a good soldier.

_______ _ _ _

No one _will know. Because I won't allow it._

_______ _ _ _

That filter's importance had begun to fade once he had realised he was attracted to her. It would never fade away completely; it was too ingrained in him.

_______ _ _ _

But moments like this one could make him forget that it existed.

_______ _ _ _

_My Kaname..._

_______ _ _ _

He couldn't stop himself from taking a step towards her. He wanted to hold her. He wanted to preserve that glow. It was a part of her, and all of her was under his protection.

_______ _ _ _

Of course she was unaware of all of this, and she soon walked out of his view.

_______ _ _ _

Sousuke followed without being aware of it.

_______ _ _ _

"AH. _Sousuke-_ "

_______ _ _ _

He blinked, but otherwise didn't reveal any surprise at his lack of restraint.

_______ _ _ _

Then, as she prepared to scold him, he placed a palm on her back and brought her close.

_______ _ _ _

She blushed, then pushed against him a little.

_______ _ _ _

"I, I have to check on her, on Kyouko-"

_______ _ _ _

A door opened, and Kyouko, most of her hair pinned up with little "jewelled" golden combs, stuck her head out.

_______ _ _ _

" _Huh?_ Kana-"

_______ _ _ _

Her eyes widened and she blushed as Sousuke's other hand played with a few loose strands of Kaname's hair.

_______ _ _ _

Kaname's blush deepened even more.

_______ _ _ _

"Ah, Kyouko, ah, uh, uhm-"

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko swallowed, then her eyes twinkled again and she smiled.

_______ _ _ _

"It's okay, you two can stay here and wait for-"

_______ _ _ _

Kaname gasped.

_______ _ _ _

" _NO._ "

_______ _ _ _

She reflexively pushed Sousuke away, then scowled at her behaviour, then grabbed his right hand with her left.

_______ _ _ _

"You're okay, right? See you later. We're leaving now..."

_______ _ _ _

Sousuke looked at Kyouko as Kaname led him away, and his eyes widened at the new hairstyle.

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko playfully pouted.

_______ _ _ _

"Does it look nice, Sousuke? Do you think Ono-D will like it?" she asked.

_______ _ _ _

Sousuke dumbly nodded, then realised what he was doing, smiled at her, then gave her a quick salute.

_______ _ _ _

She grinned, a little proudly.

_______ _ _ _

"Sousuke likes it, Kana!"

_______ _ _ _

Kaname pulled Sousuke a little harder.

_______ _ _ _

"Of _course_ he does, it's _meant_ for a man to like it," she said.

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko's grin became teasing.

_______ _ _ _

"Is _that_ why you're dragging poor Sousuke away?" she asked.

_______ _ _ _

"GAH. See you later." 

_______ _ _ _

"Yeah. Have fun, you two."

_______ _ _ _

Kaname scowled as Kyouko's giggles followed her and Sousuke to the front door.

_______ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

_______ _ _ _

~Hours away, in the living room of an upclass apartment in New York~

_______ _ _ _

Shunya Chidori picked up the phone receiver.

_______ _ _ _

Then he put in back in place and stared at the phone.

_______ _ _ _

He repeated this process twice more.

_______ _ _ _

Then he continued to stare at the phone.

_______ _ _ _

_Kaname's back in Tokyo. And I'm a part of her life again._

_______ _ _ _

He wanted to call her, but didn't quite dare. She'd broken a wall that stood between them, but she wasn't inviting him to her home to talk.

_______ _ _ _

For the moment, it was good enough that things had progressed beyond the pain and hatred, and that she was safe.

_______ _ _ _

Shunya scowled.

_______ _ _ _

But for a long time, he hadn't known where she was. How _dare_ such a thing be allowed? So damn _what_ if there was animosity between them, she was one of his children!

_______ _ _ _

With all that was going on, he didn't want notification of her death to be the only way he would know her location.

_______ _ _ _

He and various friends and contacts had tried to find her for several months, only to be told "Sorry, we can't help you" in one form of another.

_______ _ _ _

Then, suddenly a friend in Japan had contacted him to casually ask if he was aware that Kaname had frequently been in the company of a young man who was more of a military fan than a boyfriend, but this association had ended soon after she had disappeared.

_______ _ _ _

Shunya had _not_ been aware, and had asked for this young fool's name; before Shunya punished him for romantically associating with Kaname without his permission, perhaps he could provide at least a clue about had happened to her.

_______ _ _ _

Instead, it had led to almost tangible protective protocols around Mithril, which he had heard about via whispers and rumours, but hadn't paid much attention to since its actions didn't directly affect his work.

_______ _ _ _

What the hell did that organisation have to do with Kaname?

_______ _ _ _

What the hell did it _want_ to do with Kaname?

_______ _ _ _

It was the only solid clue that he had, so he and the friends and contacts persisted, not gaining any ground until Mithril disbanded and the protocols partially vanished - and then they found out a little bit more about this Sousuke Sagara.

_______ _ _ _

And didn't like any of it.

_______ _ _ _

He was a fraud. A phony. A fictitious being.

_______ _ _ _

But he remained the only solid clue that they had, so they continued to persist, and discovered his nearly literally disastrous association with Jindai High School.

_______ _ _ _

What the hell did _he_ want with Kaname? Was _he_ the reason she was missing? And were they together, hiding out somewhere away from all of the battles while living on the remainders of whatever Mithril had paid him?

_______ _ _ _

But Shunya knew that Kaname was too strong to allow such a thing. She'd _had_ to be strong to overcome so much during the troublesome years. But it had been too much for a child to bear, and she had briefly acted out, in her own ways. But she had come to terms with everything - although it was on her own terms, and those terms had kept her at a distance from her mother's curt family as well as her own father and sister.

_______ _ _ _

But, she remained missing. And so did Sousuke.

_______ _ _ _

It was as though neither of them existed.

_______ _ _ _

After a time, Ayame had asked about Kaname. Where was her sister? Why hadn't she called?

_______ _ _ _

Shunya hadn't known what to tell her, so he'd said that he was sure that Kaname would call when she wasn't so busy.

_______ _ _ _

Ayame had looked as though she had wanted to question this, but she hadn't, a relief to Shunya.

_______ _ _ _

_______ _ _ _

Eventually, Shunya and his friends and contacts had gone on with their lives, while still both looking and hoping for hints, clues, or something substantial about Kaname's - and also, to a lesser intensity, Sousuke's - location.

_______ _ _ _

Would they have to enlist international assistance?

_______ _ _ _

Eventually, the intensity of the battles had begun to lessen, leaving scars that would take much time to heal and that Shunya might eventually have to monitor.

_______ _ _ _

And then, suddenly, Kaname had left that message, but she hadn't said anything about where she had been.

_______ _ _ _

Didn't she think that this _mattered,_ damn it?

_______ _ _ _

And what the hell was that _"Sorry to make you worry"?_

_______ _ _ _

Oh, she had done a _lot_ more than cause people to worry. And when he saw her he would-

_______ _ _ _

Shunya sighed.

_______ _ _ _

What _would_ he do, exactly?

_______ _ _ _

Being welcoming would be suspected. Being scolding would be rejected.

_______ _ _ _

But he couldn't do _nothing._

_______ _ _ _

So he'd had _something_ done, which was another reason he wanted to but didn't quite dare to call her; she would be very upset if she knew that he was the one responsible for it, even though he'd done it to give her some needed help.

_______ _ _ _

He knew that trigger-sensitive temper.

_______ _ _ _

And soon after he'd done it, another friend told him that she'd been seen leaving the Jindai High School grounds in the company of four of her friends, and that one of them was Sousuke, who had arrived at that school soon after Kaname herself had, damn near breaking his neck to get there.

_______ _ _ _

And that it was obvious that he was more than a friend.

_______ _ _ _

_"What do you_ mean _, 'more than a friend'? And how the hell did _he_ know where she was?"_

________ _ _ _ _

"Say his name, and you hit a wall of classified crap. But he does act like he's military."

________ _ _ _ _

" _Damn it!_ He's associated with Mithril and that school somehow, he might be a soldier, my daughter's tied into this, somehow, and she _likes_ him? This doesn't make sense." 

________ _ _ _ _

"We've got to get past that wall."

________ _ _ _ _

_"_ Right. _You keep working on that."_

_______ _ _ _

Shunya's eyes glinted.

_______ _ _ _

"You and I are going to have a _v-e-r-y_ long talk, Mister Sousuke Sagara."

_______ _ _ _

But in the meantime, it was fine with Shunya if the younger man took the blame for what he himself had done.

_______ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

_______ _ _ _

~Early evening, standing on a long line outside of a movie theatre~

_______ _ _ _

Scowling at the harried-looking ushers as they "managed" those waiting to see one or another of what was playing, Ono-D hoped that Kyouko didn't notice that he kept sneaking glances at her.

_______ _ _ _

He knew it was rude, but he couldn't stop himself from doing it.

_______ _ _ _

_She's so quiet, you kinda have to look hard to notice anything about her._

_______ _ _ _

But she was very noticeable at the moment.

_______ _ _ _

She was wearing a cream dress with green, gold and brown flowers with a short-sleeved waist-length shimmering navy jacket, and the skirt of the dress swirled just below her knees. And around each ankle was a single golden chain with a little golden heart that attached to the back of low-heeled black pumps. 

_______ _ _ _

And the little combs in her "casually" pinned up hair - he knew that kind of "casual", he'd seen models who made efforts to give themselves an "I don't really care" look when they actually cared a lot - seemed to do something nice for her hair and eyes.

_______ _ _ _

She was also wearing lipstick, a light perfume that smelled like spiced roses, and she carried a black satin evening purse in one hand.

_______ _ _ _

_I bet Kaname did all this, got her all dressed up, to impress me. Guys_ do _notice these things. But Kyouko knows that I don't care how she looks. So why bother with it?_

_______ _ _ _

So why he was blushing?

_______ _ _ _

He wasn't dressed as nicely as she was, but he did look presentable, wearing a white shirt, black jacket and pants, and black shoes. 

_______ _ _ _

Was _discomfort_ the reason he was blushing?

_______ _ _ _

Or was it that somehow either she or Kaname had somehow known what he'd be wearing this evening?

_______ _ _ _

_Girls are so mysterious. Or is Kaname trying to make me forget all about her?_

_______ _ _ _

He hoped that no one, including Kaname and Kyouko herself, thought that he was hanging out with Kyouko to try to win Kaname back.

_______ _ _ _

_But Kyouko's not like that. Anyway, there's nothing between me and Kaname. It was over a long time ago._

_______ _ _ _

And though he occasionally entertained a thought about what might have been, reality - and the possibility of being whacked with that infamous paper fan - quickly returned.

_______ _ _ _

_Besides..._

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko was the yin to Kaname's yang, but no way was she "dark" or weak. He'd seen her strength himself, and it had drawn him closer to her.

_______ _ _ _

A real man liked a strong woman by his side, wasn't that so?

_______ _ _ _

The blush deepened, and he forced himself to look at everything else around him.

_______ _ _ _

_This is just hanging out. So why..._

_______ _ _ _

"Are you..."

_______ _ _ _

His voice cracked. He cleared his throat and tried again.

_______ _ _ _

_Damn it. I talk to girls all the time._

_______ _ _ _

"Are you cold? Do you want something to eat? A snack? Or something to drink?"

_______ _ _ _

She smiled up at him, and his heart seemed to skip a beat.

_______ _ _ _

_She's_ beautiful...

_______ _ _ _

"No, Ken, thank you, I'm fine."

_______ _ _ _

And then _she_ blushed, before quickly looking away.

_______ _ _ _

_Oh no! What did I...I can't_ believe _that I just called him that!_

_______ _ _ _

He couldn't blame her for blushing. _No one_ called him that. He couldn't remember anyone calling him that, anyway. But if anyone else had, or ever did, it wouldn't ever sound as nice as it did coming from _her._

_______ _ _ _

"Uhm, I'm sorry...heh, I called you that..."

_______ _ _ _

"Uhm...it's fine. Don't worry about it."

_______ _ _ _

"Uh, thanks."

_______ _ _ _

He stole a new glance at her before looking at the line again.

_______ _ _ _

_You really are pretty,_ he thought.

_______ _ _ _

And she deserved better than standing in any damned line waiting for any damned thing.

_______ _ _ _

"Hey...You want to go somewhere else?" he asked her.

_______ _ _ _

She thought about it, then shook her head.

_______ _ _ _

_He almost sounded like Sousuke. Oh, that reminds me. I have to tell Kana where I am now._

_______ _ _ _

She took her phone out of her purse, and a young male usher hurried over.

_______ _ _ _

"Hey, sorry, you have to turn that off, or put it on silent mode-"

_______ _ _ _

Ono-D reflexively gave him a look that promised death if he got too close, and the usher backed away while waving his hands about.

_______ _ _ _

"Sorry, man, it's the rules, I don't _want_ to touch your girlfriend, okay?"

_______ _ _ _

Both Ono-D and Kyouko, her hand frozen in the act of beginning to write a text, blushed anew.

_______ _ _ _

"Uhm-" she began.

_______ _ _ _

"We're not-" he began.

_______ _ _ _

The usher rolled his eyes.

_______ _ _ _

"What _ever._ I don't care. Just turn it off when you're done, all right?" he said, then walked away.

_______ _ _ _

" _Idiot,_ " Ono-D sneered, then went pale.

_______ _ _ _

Kyouko frowned.

_______ _ _ _

_He didn't have to say it_ that _way,_ she thought.

_______ _ _ _

He exhaled.

_______ _ _ _

_Damn it!_

_______ _ _ _

"Sorry, Kyouko. It's just that...he jumped to that conclusion. I mean..."

_______ _ _ _

He looked at her hands, then at the line again.

_______ _ _ _

"...we're just friends, right?"

_______ _ _ _

She hesitated, then nodded.

_______ _ _ _

_He's so unsure. I am, too._

_______ _ _ _

"Y-yeah. Just friends."

_______ _ _ _

He exhaled again, but at the slow-moving line, then extended a hand to her.

_______ _ _ _

_You deserve better than this. And I'm sorry._

_______ _ _ _

"Let's go," he said, with a Sousuke-like decisiveness in his voice that caused her to look at him wide-eyed.

_______ _ _ _

" _Huh?_ " she managed to ask.

_______ _ _ _

_He definitely sounded a little bit like Sousuke..._

_______ _ _ _

"We didn't come here for you to wait. It's unacceptable. Let's get something to eat, then come back here, and if it's _still_ like this we'll find something else to do," he said quite decisively.

_______ _ _ _

She showed him a bright smile that made him blush yet again, finished texting as quickly as she could, put the phone back in her bag, then took his hand without thinking about it.

_______ _ _ _

"Where do you want to go?" he asked her a little nervously.

_______ _ _ _

"Just somewhere nice," she said.

_______ _ _ _

He nodded, gently led her a small distance away from the movie theatre, then used his free hand to get his cell phone out of a pants pocket.

_______ _ _ _

Her eyebrows went up.

_______ _ _ _

"Uh-"

_______ _ _ _

He gave her a very quick glance.

_______ _ _ _

"Yeah, I'm getting a taxi. You've walked enough today," he said.

_______ _ _ _

She blushed yet again, then looked down, saw that they were holding hands quite comfortably and blushed even deeper.

_______ _ _ _

But then she smiled.

_______ _ _ _

_This_ is _a date,_ she thought.

_______ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

_______ _ _ _

~A "Try-on" area in the woman's section of a department store~

_______ _ _ _

"I _mean,_ " a hesitant and embarrassed-sounding Kaname said from inside of the "room" that a blushing yet pensive-looking Sousuke stood about six feet away from, "yeah, I _admit it_ , those two made me _think_ about it, but wouldn't it be nice, to go somewhere nice after we finish studying, and have a nice, fancy - or maybe not so fancy, but you know what I mean - dinner?"

_______ _ _ _

"Hmmm," said Sousuke, and checked out his current environment.

_______ _ _ _

_Why have such a large selection? One should simply choose according to the situation._

_______ _ _ _

He looked at what he would choose for Kaname, but it would cover her from neck to ankle and therefore she might find it _too_ practical for the situation.

_______ _ _ _

He let his eyes wander.

_______ _ _ _

_I need...another choice-_

_______ _ _ _

" _Argh._ Are you _still_ mad at me for dragging you here?" she unknowingly interrupted his thoughts with.

_______ _ _ _

Sousuke shook his head.

_______ _ _ _

_"I'm not mad at you," he said._

______ _ _

"But you just let me talk on and on and even when we came in here, all you ever said was 'hmmm'. Just like you did now," she said with a bit of a pout in her voice

______ _ _

Sousuke scowled. How could he tell her that he'd learned a long time ago to let her drag him and/or talk on and on, and just say 'hmmm', or nothing at all - depending on which was appropriate - so she wouldn't get angry?

______ _ _

And when she _was_ angry, talking to her was like negotiating a mine field.

______ _ _

No, on further consideration, it _had_ been.

______ _ _

For example, she had been angry a little earlier, but she hadn't been so quick to hit him as before. As she had said, she'd dragged him and talked on and on.

______ _ _

Why was this? Why _was_ she relatively calmer? Had the _experience_ affected her?

______ _ _

He hadn't spent enough time with her since their reunion to know for certain. But he had no concerns about her identity. Overall, she still behaved as only she did.

______ _ _

"Sorry," he said.

______ _ _

" _Argh. Hopeless._ But wait a minute, are you worried about being in a fancy - or maybe not so fancy - place? We've hung out with our friends, but...this'll be... _different,_ " she said.

______ _ _

His eyes widened. Yes, she had hit upon a truth. He _was_ concerned about being in a fancy - or maybe not so fancy - place not to survey or to take out a target, but for the intent of eating a meal. And with _her. Alone._

______ _ _

She wouldn't need to tell him how to look the part. That wasn't the problem. He wasn't versed in the etiquette of such places, or in "small talk". And he didn't understand what men and women would whisper in each other's ears that would make women blush, say the even more confusing "You _silly_ ", or give the man's arm, forearm or wrist a light hit.

______ _ _

"Yes, I'm a little uncomfortable about that, and...other things," he admitted.

______ _ _

"Oh, there's nothing to worry about," she said, but hesitation nearly overrode confidence. "We'll sit by a window, and have a nice meal while enjoying the view, and talk about this and that, and relax, have an _awesome_ dessert, then leave."

______ _ _

She nervously cleared her throat, then added: "Just a nice evening. Nothing to worry about at all. Except, since you owe me for alll the trouble you've caused, I'm going to order the most expensive things on the menu!"

______ _ _

He scowled as she finished the second sentence.

______ _ _

_I'm worried._

______ _ _

If this hadn't been so short-notice, he could have consulted someone for the proper training for this situation.

______ _ _

_Kurz and Mao?_

______ _ _

He actually restrained a snort.

______ _ _

"Okay," he said anyway.

______ _ _

But who else could he have asked?

______ _ _

He consulted a mental list of possibilities, but all of them were soldiers, allies or contacts, and most of them were either deceased or otherwise unavailable.

______ _ _

But there _was_ Tessa, who he _still_ hadn't called back.

______ _ _

He bowed his head and sighed.

______ _ _

He hadn't _forgotten_ to call her. Time had just gotten away from him. But that was a poor excuse.

______ _ _

_When did I become so careless?_

______ _ _

"You're still worried, though, aren't you?" Kaname asked a little nervously.

______ _ _

He nodded.

______ _ _

"Yes," he said.

______ _ _

She sighed.

______ _ _

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have forced this on you, and..."

______ _ _

"It's okay."

______ _ _

"It's _not_ okay."

______ _ _

He raised his head, then scowled again.

______ _ _

"It isn't a problem. I...I'd like to do this."

______ _ _

His eyes widened at these words, but he hadn't lied. Although he was still worried about it, at least he would be with Kaname, and what _wouldn't_ he suffer for her sake?

______ _ _

"You're not fooling me...you don't want to feel guilty," she said grumpily.

______ _ _

He exhaled.

______ _ _

" _Kaname,_ " he said a little firmly.

______ _ _

"What," she said flatly.

______ _ _

He suddenly blushed again, then winced, then swallowed.

______ _ _

_This counts as suffering, doesn't it?_

______ _ _

"You said you wanted me to help you choose appropriate clothing for this, even though you're aware of my lack of ability in choosing clothing that wouldn't be fully practical for the situation...so...you've been in there long enough-"

______ _ _

She heaved a dramatic sigh.

______ _ _

"Okay, _okay._ Let me know if you think _this_ is appropriate-"

______ _ _

She opened the door and began a dramatic pose, but soon tossed the silvery fake-fur stole aside and rushed over to grab the suddenly barely-breathing Sousuke instead, being careful to turn him away from any direct view of the V-necked, "jewel"-strapped dark blue evening gown and silvery high heels she was wearing.

______ _ _

"Uhm...too much?" she asked him.

______ _ _

" _I'm_ your...your target," he barely managed to say, and she blushed although she wasn't quite sure what he'd meant.

______ _ _

Neither was he, and he looked confused just before anger briefly flashed in his eyes.

______ _ _

_My intent...is not to attract enemy to her location..._

______ _ _

But which enemy was he thinking about?

______ _ _

He didn't understand.

______ _ _

" _Sousuke..._ " she said very softly, then blinked her "soft mood" away and lightly smacked his back.

______ _ _

He scowled, but soon regained a normal breathing rhythm.

______ _ _

"Come _on_ , Sergeant - I mean Sousuke - get the lead out. I'll choose something less...dangerous, all right?" she said gently.

______ _ _

He frowned at her.

______ _ _

" _I'll_ choose something," he said.

______ _ _

Her eyes widened, then she covered up her surprise with "polite" laughter.

______ _ _

"But you're a _guy_ , and a - well, you _used_ to be a soldier, so-"

______ _ _

"But aren't there men who produce clothing for women?"

______ _ _

"Yeah, but-"

______ _ _

"I have an advantage over those men."

______ _ _

" _Oh?_ "

______ _ _

"Yes. I know the situation we are going to encounter-"

______ _ _

He looked around the "environment" again, then nodded with satisfaction at something out of her immediate view.

______ _ _

"I know you-"

______ _ _

She let go of him, and he gave her a quick look-over as both of them stood up straight.

______ _ _

"And though you have lost a little weight, your proportions haven't markably changed-"

______ _ _

She blushed _very_ deeply, then quickly wrapped her arms around her bosom.

______ _ _

" _My WHAT?_ "

______ _ _

What she had _wanted_ to ask was just how did he know what her proportions - her _measurements_ , though that word didn't make it any better - were, but then she realised that he'd probably known what they were the day they'd met, which meant that he had known what they were when she had worn that certain bikini on the "beach day" they had spent with some of their friends.

______ _ _

_But his_ training...

______ _ _

It wasn't that he hadn't known that she was female. As his "rigging" the hot springs area to prevent "access" to the woman's side had shown, it was that he was more likely to protect females than to chase them.

______ _ _

_He did deserve to get punished for splattering me with that watermelon! But I really did get mad at him not noticing for nothing. He_ did _notice. Even if it wasn't the way I wanted him to._

______ _ _

And now he was probably thinking about clothing that would conceal her femininity from any ill-meaning males.

______ _ _

_He probably thinks he's just being practical. Why can't he be even a little bit jealous?_

______ _ _

"Sousuke. I appreciate it, but..."

______ _ _

"It's fine. I learned some things while we're weren't together. I definitely understand females a little better now."

______ _ _

Her eyes blazed, and her hands became fists at her sides.

______ _ _

"You _what? What_ things? And what do you mean by _'definitely'?_ "

______ _ _

Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and her jealousy was revealed in her voice when she spoke again.

______ _ _

"Did you touch another girl while we weren't together, Sousuke?"

______ _ _

His own eyes narrowed, and she could just _see_ that he was remembering _something_ before he answered with an almost curt "No."

______ _ _

"Just _what_ aren't you telling me, Sagara?"

______ _ _

_So, we're back to_ that, he thought before telling her: "Her name was Nami, and she and her friends worked on Arm Slaves. She was a Whispered, also. But she died because of my mistakes."

______ _ _

She immediately calmed down, and looked away.

______ _ _

_But I told you, didn't I? That I didn't care how many people had to die for you to rescue me,_ she thought.

______ _ _

"This was while you were...looking for me. It's _my_ fault, another death that wouldn't have happened if I had-"

______ _ _

He gripped her shoulders almost hard enough to hurt.

______ _ _

_Both of us are responsible for the deaths that allowed us to be together,_ he thought.

______ _ _

"Enemies were looking for _me. I_ got her involved. It was _my_ fault." 

______ _ _

"But-"

______ _ _

"I was selfish. I could have walked away. But I didn't."

______ _ _

She sniffled suddenly, then looked at him.

______ _ _

"Because of _me-_ "

______ _ _

She began to cry, and he released his grip to hold her close.

______ _ _

"It's _all_ because of meee..."

______ _ _

"Ka-"

______ _ _

" _No!_ It's all _my_ fault. The world could have ended because of me. I was _so stupid!_ "

______ _ _

"You were frightened."

______ _ _

"No, I was _stupid!_ I gave myself up to him - I went to him - because I thought that the battle, all the _stupid_ fighting, would be over. I thought that everything could get back to normal! But it got _worse!_ And then...and then...I had the chance to kill-"

______ _ _

"It's all right."

______ _ _

"-I couldn't do it. I could have ended everything myself but I _didn't!_ "

______ _ _

"You're not a-"

______ _ _

"I was _useless._ "

______ _ _

" _No._ " 

______ _ _

" _Yes._ Sousuke, it was-"

______ _ _

"Leonard thought he was smart. But he was a coward that tried to steal your strength. So was Sophia. Don't you see? Everyone relies on your strength. So you have to protect it."

______ _ _

"You, too? Do _you_ rely on it?"

______ _ _

"Yes."

______ _ _

" _Really?_ "

______ _ _

"Yes, really."

______ _ _

She sniffled, then nodded.

______ _ _

"Okay. But Sousuke..."

______ _ _

"Hmmm?"

______ _ _

"Aren't you going to get tired of comforting me?" she asked him.

______ _ _

He briefly pressed his nose and mouth to her hair.

______ _ _

"I didn't bring you back so you would stop crying or getting angry. I brought you back so you can live the life you want. With me."

______ _ _

He didn't add "For the rest of our lives" because that could be misinterpreted. Also, it briefly reminded him of his recent strange dream.

______ _ _

_Not_ that the memory was _entirely_ unpleasant. However...

______ _ _

She gasped, then coughed heavily, and he wondered if she was going to need first aid. But instead, she recovered then snuggled closer to him.

______ _ _

"Mmmmmmm...and are you going to say that my strength helped you?"

______ _ _

"Isn't it obvious that it did?"

______ _ _

"Heh, you don't give up, do you. That's your best quality, I think."

______ _ _

"No, there's another."

______ _ _

Curious, she pulled back to look up at him, and he saw that she hadn't stopped crying; she had just been quiet about it.

______ _ _

"Kaname..."

______ _ _

She winced at her reflection in his eyes.

______ _ _

_Oh my God, I look_ terrible! she thought.

______ _ _

"What...what's your other quality?" she asked him.

______ _ _

He blushed, then swallowed.

______ _ _

"That...you're letting me do this. What I'm doing now. With you," he said.

______ _ _

She involuntarily took a deep breath, then buried her face in his neck and cried a little harder.

______ _ _

"Don't...you'd better not _ever_ regret saying that," she said.

______ _ _

He held her even closer.

______ _ _

"I won't," he said.

______ _ _

"But it - but it won't be easy," she managed to say.

______ _ _

"I know," he said.

______ _ _

"You'd better be ready for it," she said.

______ _ _

"Anytime, anywhere," he said.

______ _ _

"Mmmmmmmm..."

______ _ _

_The guy I love is patient and loyal, too,_ she thought.

______ _ _

"...then you can choose something for me to wear, okay?"

______ _ _

He nodded.

______ _ _

"Yes, ma'am."

______ _ _

" _Hey_ , I'm not a 'ma'am'. Call me something else." 

______ _ _

He grinned.

______ _ _

"Partner."

______ _ _

But he was half-teasing her; he really didn't know what else to call her.

______ _ _

"Argh... _still_ hopeless."

______ _ _

But she was smiling as she said it.

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~Table in a restaurant with a third-floor view of an area not far from Jindai High~

______ _ _

Ono-D thanked the male server as he placed his and Kyouko's dinner and drink choices in front of them, then grinned politely and thanked him again after gently being told to please enjoy the meal.

______ _ _

The grin quickly became a nervous frown as he stopped watching the server leave and turned his eyes to Kyouko, who was quietly saying that she was about to "receive" the meal.

______ _ _

He did the same, then accidentally quietly asked her if it was to her liking.

______ _ _

She accidentally looked up at him through lowered lashes, then blushed and nodded.

______ _ _

_Oops. I didn't mean to..._ she thought.

______ _ _

"It's...it's _great_ , Ono-D. And it's really nice here. Thank you," she said.

______ _ _

He looked as relieved as he felt.

______ _ _

_I appreciate that. I couldn't afford much better,_ he thought.

______ _ _

"Thanks," he said, then blushed.

______ _ _

_But what's_ wrong _with me? It's just dinner. We've been alone before. So what's so different_ this _time?_ he wondered.

______ _ _

Kyouko smiled at him, then began to eat, her hands shaking a little.

______ _ _

_This_ is _nice. So what's wrong?_ she wondered.

______ _ _

Ono-D frowned, then also began to eat.

______ _ _

_She's nervous too..._ he noted.

______ _ _

The answer came to her first, and she briefly froze in place; then it came to him, and he thoughtfully scowled.

______ _ _

Because Sousuke and Kaname were together now, their will-they-or-won't-they "shadow" wasn't sharing this meal with Ono-D and Kyouko.

______ _ _

_That_ situation surely had been one of Jindai's biggest. 

______ _ _

By being Kaname's best friend and wanting her to be with Sousuke, Kyouko naturally had been close to the center of it. And Ono-D had been pulled into it first by association, then by friendship.

______ _ _

The results of the actions of those two were at least part of the reason these two were together like this now.

______ _ _

Of course, it hadn't been just Kyouko and Ono-D who had been a part of it. Especially because the misunderstood and bad-situation-causing "military geek" Sousuke and the "beautiful but deadly" Kaname had been ignorant of their feelings for each other, they had inadvertently drawn nearly everyone around them into the situation.

______ _ _

And when Kaname had gone missing, so had the energy that the situation had provided, but the drama of it had shifted to Sousuke's promise that he would bring her back.

______ _ _

Would he or wouldn't he?

______ _ _

_Could_ he?

______ _ _

In the meantime, Kyouko and Ono-D had become closer, with the drama ever likely to be part of their conversations - and who knew who else's?

______ _ _

The drama wasn't a news story, and those outside of it might not ever know about it. But for those within the "circle", a resolution was desired. 

______ _ _

And now one had been given.

______ _ _

This was the first time that Kyouko and Ono-D had been on a "date" since Kaname had come back to Japan.

______ _ _

So _now_ what?

______ _ _

Ono-D suddenly stopped eating and contemplatively looked at Kyouko, who pretended not to notice until he waited for an opportunity to put a hand over hers.

______ _ _

She blushed, then gasped as she noticed that he wasn't blushing and her own blush deepened.

______ _ _

"Do you still want to see that movie tonight?" he softly asked her.

______ _ _

She shook her head, and he nodded slowly.

______ _ _

"Then, you and I can talk," he said, then blushed and drew back.

______ _ _

She swallowed, then nodded.

______ _ _

"I'd like that," she said.

______ _ _

"Uh - thanks," he said.

______ _ _

"Because-" she began, then hesitated.

______ _ _

He nodded.

______ _ _

"Because we _need_ to," he said.

______ _ _

She nodded again.

______ _ _

Would they remain as friends? Would it be...something else?

______ _ _

Neither of them knew at the moment. But with "the drama" over, they could focus on their own "situation."

______ _ _

_Finally, we can talk about it,_ both of them thought, then resumed eating.

______ _ _

Then, Kyouko's cell phone indicated that she had a new message, and she jerked a little.

______ _ _

Ono-D grinned.

______ _ _

"Is that Kaname checking on you again? Tell her I said hi," he said.

______ _ _

She frowned slightly - whatever the message was about, it was interrupting her meal with her...

______ _ _

She suddenly remembered holding hands with Ono-D until the taxi had arrived. His hand had moved to her back then, and after getting into the taxi after her, he had sat right next to her.

______ _ _

_It had felt so nice. But we're still just friends,_ she thought as she slipped the phone out of her purse.

______ _ _

"Okay, I'll tell her," she said, then retrieved the message and giggled.

______ _ _

Ono-D raised his eyebrows.

______ _ _

"What's so funny? Did Sousuke break something again?" he asked, then frowned.

______ _ _

_Those two again...and you can't talk about one without mentioning the other,_ he thought.

______ _ _

Kyouko shook her head.

______ _ _

"She said he's hopeless, but she hopes that _I'm_ having fun," she said.

______ _ _

"Yeah?" Ono-D got a bit more comfortable. "What are you gonna tell her?"

______ _ _

Kyouko blushed a little, then showed him a smile that was almost as pretty as she was.

______ _ _

"I'm going to tell her that I'll talk about it tomorrow," she said.

______ _ _

Ono-D also blushed, as that was as good as a "Do Not Disturb" as he'd ever heard.

______ _ _

"Y-yeah," he said, but she was texting a reply and didn't seem to hear him.

______ _ _

_That's okay. We'll just finish eating, then go somewhere else and talk. But whatever happens, let's stay friends, right?_ he thought, then resumed eating a little more quickly than intended.

______ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

______ _ _

~Living room, Kaname's apartment~

______ _ _

Kaname, sharing the floor with brand-new notebooks and second-hand textbooks, stared jaw-dropped at Kyouko's reply to the text message.

______ _ _

_She...she...Ono-D...could it_ be? she wondered.

______ _ _

"What's wrong?" Sousuke asked from the kitchen, where he was making two cups of bagged tea, the box of which had been in one of the small variety of bags that he and Kaname had brought into the apartment and - except for the two empty dress-bags on her bed - were on the couch.

______ _ _

Kaname blinked a few times, recovered from her surprise, then grinned deviously.

______ _ _

Sousuke raised an eyebrow.

______ _ _

_Is she going to scheme again?_ he wondered.

______ _ _

"Heh heh heh, they want to be left alone, which means they're on a _real_ date," Kaname said.

______ _ _

Sousuke frowned contemplatively.

______ _ _

"What's the difference?" he asked, and she listlessly sagged before glaring at him.

______ _ _

_Arrrrghhh..._ Didn't you say you learned a lot? _Anyway_ , a _real_ date means he's going to ask her to go steady with him, you know, ask her to be his girlfriend," she said.

______ _ _

His frown deepened, and she rolled her eyes.

______ _ _

_Don't tell me he_ still _doesn't get it..._ she thought.

______ _ _

"I see..." he trailed off as he continued to ponder something. "...So, is it _necessary_ for a man to ask?" he asked.

______ _ _

Her heart seemed to skip a beat, but she knew that with Sousuke, even now, it was best to be cautious.

______ _ _

"Well, yeah, it's a very special moment that deserves a lot of respect," she said, then sat up straight, keeping her eyes on him...on his _fingers_ , which were handling his task with more care than _she_ used when she was making tea.

______ _ _

_He's more gentle than I remembered. He_ really _wants to do this right,_ she thought.

______ _ _

"Hmmmm," he said, then nodded, carefully set the cups on the table, and looked at her contemplatively.

______ _ _

_It's too soon, but haven't we already done enough to qualify for this?_ he thought.

______ _ _

This time, one of _her_ eyebrows went up.

______ _ _

_What's this new look on his face? What is he_ thinking? she wondered.

______ _ _

He suddenly looked away.

______ _ _

"I'm sorry, Kaname-"

______ _ _

" _Huh?_ What are you talking about-"

______ _ _

"-the meal we're going to eat can't be a 'real' date."

______ _ _

" _HUH?_ "

______ _ _

He blushed very deeply.

______ _ _

"I can't ask you yet. But I thought that...considering...everything...it wouldn't be necessary. However...I _will_ ask you. But not tonight," he said.

______ _ _

Her eyes widened, and she stared at him for a few long quiet seconds as she realised what he had just said.

______ _ _

_Doesn't he realise...?_ she wondered.

______ _ _

As she continued to stare, she realised that he _did_ know how serious "the special moment" was, or had some kind of awareness of it at least, and he really, truly _wasn't ever_ going to leave her.

______ _ _

He was committed to her.

______ _ _

And now she could _almost_ imagine them walking down the aisle.

______ _ _

But, just to make certain-

______ _ _

Ignoring her sudden blushing, she bounced up, ran over to him, and kissed him hard before wrapping her arms around him.

______ _ _

"It's not _necessary_ for you to ask me. But it would be very nice if you did - it _will_ be nice _when_ you do," she said.

______ _ _

He blushed, then his eyes seemed to sparkle; then, he picked up one of the cups and pulled back to offer her a sip.

______ _ _

She blushed, then released him to pick up the other cup to offer him a sip.

______ _ _

After adjusting their positions, and after a few amused efforts, each took a sip, then both of them put the cups down and they held each other closely.

______ _ _

"Let's eat dinner now," he said softly.

______ _ _

She faked innocence, batting her eyes at him and pouting.

______ _ _

"But it's getting kind of late. We won't get much studying done," she said.

______ _ _

"Oh? That's a shame," he said with a hint of sarcasm.

______ _ _

That he knew how to speak with a hint of anything both surprised and pleased her, and she pulled back to see if he really was Sousuke or if she was dreaming, but he kissed her before she could even form the question in her mind.

______ _ _

She slowly tangled her fingers in his hair, and he grunted and kissed deeper, his mouth both coaxing and demanding the matching response that he knew she could give to him.

______ _ _

This was a different version of him. It wasn't the gentle and embarrassed man who had so conscientiously made the cups of tea just now.

______ _ _

But it wasn't a problem.

______ _ _

Suddenly, it became even harder for them to catch their breaths. It was more powerful, somehow, and his hands roughly moved to her rear as though to keep the firm contours of his body pressed against the softness of hers.

______ _ _

She vaguely wondered if he understood what this kiss could lead to, then wondered if he knew _how._

______ _ _

Then she remembered that they weren't ready for _that_ yet, anyway, and fought to come to her senses.

______ _ _

Perhaps also remembering this, or sensing her distress, Sousuke suddenly pulled back and away, panting, and his eyes revealed a hint of the trouble she was in.

______ _ _

Clarity immediately returned to her at that expression, and she gasped after one of her own panting breaths.

______ _ _

_Oh, dear God,_ she thought.

______ _ _

He roughly shook his head as though to clear it, just as roughly took a deep sip of tea, then sat down so hard that the chair squeaked and stared straight ahead as he put the cup down and regained his own clarity.

______ _ _

_Oh_ shit... he thought.

______ _ _

"I...I..."

______ _ _

His voice was rough, and sounded clogged; he cleared his throat and tried again.

______ _ _

_I wanted to_ devour _her._

______ _ _

His blush betrayed his new thoughts, and she also blushed as similar thoughts came to her.

______ _ _

_He might kill me. But it would still be AMAZING,_ she thought.

______ _ _

"I...Uh, let's just...let's forget about dinner. I'll study here, at the table-" he began.

______ _ _

"NO!" she accidentally shouted, then blushed, winced and tried again.

______ _ _

"No. I mean...this was just a kiss. We weren't going to...we're _not_ going to do anything... _wrong_ , right? I mean, before we're ready to - if we _ever_ get ready to - if we _want_ to get ready to-"

______ _ _

She scowled at her hopefully temporary inability to communicate properly.

______ _ _

_But does this mean that we can't kiss any more? No. We just have to be_ very _careful from now on,_ she thought.

______ _ _

" _Damn_ it," she said softly, then slumped in the other chair.

______ _ _

He braved a smile.

______ _ _

_Whatever you want, Kaname. But I do want to...date you in the proper manner, _he thought.__

________ _ _ _ _

"Okay, we'll go," he said.

________ _ _ _ _

She smiled at him, and both of them thought about the "suitable clothing for the occasion", which Sousuke had chosen and paid for: A three-piece off-the-rack black suit and an ankle-length dark navy dress, which had a "tasteful" V-neck, "bell" sleeves and a nipped-in waist.

________ _ _ _ _

Sousuke had seen her carry the dress bags containing these towards her bedroom, but had blushed and walked into the kitchen before she had entered it. So he didn't know that she had hung the suit behind the dress in a bedroom closet.

________ _ _ _ _

She hadn't _thought_ that she'd thought anything about placing the outfits together like that, but now she wondered if she'd been making a statement of some kind about her and Sousuke finally being together.

________ _ _ _ _

They _were_ together, weren't they?

________ _ _ _ _

Forever and ever?

________ _ _ _ _

" _Yeah!_ Let's show the whole damned world that we're back home, and doing just fine!" she said, then suddenly frowned and looked Sousuke over with a critical eye.

________ _ _ _ _

As his eyebrows went up again, she commanded: "Go back home and take a shower first, Sagara, you're an absolute _mess._."

________ _ _ _ _

He blinked, then grinned, then stood up and saluted her.

________ _ _ _ _

"Yes, ma'am. Returning to quarters to clean up, ma'am," he said.

________ _ _ _ _

She nodded, then saluted back.

________ _ _ _ _

He winked at her, then began to leave the apartment.

________ _ _ _ _

As she watched, she remembered that she'd forgotten to tell him "Dismissed."

________ _ _ _ _

_But I'll never have to tell him that anyway, right?_ she thought.

________ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

________ _ _ _ _

~Twenty minutes later~

________ _ _ _ _

When Kaname opened the apartment's door after Sousuke's knock, he froze in place as he forgot where he was.

________ _ _ _ _

He hadn't realised how _beautiful_ the dress would look on her, especially with her loose hair.

________ _ _ _ _

And her neck looked especially appetising for some reason...

________ _ _ _ _

She blushed at his scrutiny, briefly scowled at the fatigues he was wearing - he _really_ needed to go shopping - then grabbed him by a wrist and yanked him inside, releasing him so she could almost absentmindedly push some of her hair over an ear.

________ _ _ _ _

"I, uh, put your suit in the bathroom...I put the vest aside though, that's too much. You can change while I try to do _something_ with this hair-"

________ _ _ _ _

"Can you leave it like that? Just like you have it now," he said. 

________ _ _ _ _

Now _she_ froze in place.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Huh?_ " she asked.

________ _ _ _ _

He blushed.

________ _ _ _ _

"Please?" he requested.

________ _ _ _ _

" _UH...sure,_ since you like it so much...I'll pin it up like that, then put some of the rest over one shoulder. Okay?"

________ _ _ _ _

He nodded.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Thank_ you," he said.

________ _ _ _ _

"Uh... _sure._ You're welcome," she said, then turned to show him a playful smile. "No problem," she added.

________ _ _ _ _

He chuckled at that, which deepened her blush - didn't he realise that being happy made him more handsome? - then, still amused, turned and walked to the bathroom.

________ _ _ _ _

She toyed with some of her hair, then walked towards her bedroom.

________ _ _ _ _

"We're finally, finally, really, _really_ going on a date," she said with wonder, then stopped in place.

________ _ _ _ _

"But why aren't we more excited about it?"

________ _ _ _ _

She looked in the direction of the bathroom.

________ _ _ _ _

"Why does it feel... _normal?_ " 

________ _ _ _ _

Surely they weren't _that_ comfortable with each other.

________ _ _ _ _

And, considering that they had been apart for so long-

________ _ _ _ _

But - what if they _were_ so comfortable with each other?

________ _ _ _ _

Was _this_ love?

________ _ _ _ _

"Uh, Kaname-" he suddenly began, and she returned to the moment.

________ _ _ _ _

"Uh, yeah, I put an extra brush in there earlier. Don't you want a comb instead?" she asked.

________ _ _ _ _

"Uh...no, I think the brush will work," he said.

________ _ _ _ _

"Okay," she said, then shrugged, turned, resumed walking to her bedroom, then her eyebrows went up and she suddenly stopped in place again.

________ _ _ _ _

_What was that we just did?_ she wondered, then smiled.

________ _ _ _ _

"Whatever it was, I liked it. Let's do that again and again," she said softly, then walked to her bedroom.

________ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

________ _ _ _ _

~Half a hour later~

________ _ _ _ _

If Kyouko and Ono-D had been closer to a certain exit of the park they were walking in now, they might have seen the taxi that Kaname and Sousuke were in pass by.

________ _ _ _ _

But this might not have mattered. The young women weren't paying much attention to anything other than the young men they were with, Kyouko because she and Ono-D were discussing their relationship, and Kaname because she was quite happy being snuggled against Sousuke's left shoulder.

________ _ _ _ _

However, at the same exact instant, both of the young women looked at the sky, smiled, and thought _It's going to be a beautiful night._

________ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

________ _ _ _ _

~Living room adjacent to the second-floor balcony of the house~

________ _ _ _ _

"Thank you," Tessa said, then replaced the "crystal" receiver back on the phone on the little table in front of the couch she was sitting on, sighed, then leaned back.

________ _ _ _ _

"How many more tea shops do I have to call? Doesn't _anyone_ have the tea I want?" she wondered out loud, then scowled. "It hasn't been a good day," she added.

________ _ _ _ _

Her various appointments had been unproductive. One little meeting after another, with nothing uneventful.

________ _ _ _ _

And the meeting with her "Uncle" Jerome and Richard Mardukas had been disappointing.

________ _ _ _ _

But it wasn't _their_ fault.

________ _ _ _ _

People had ideas, suggestions and recommendations about what had happened and about how to protect the present. And many were very aware that there was still so much work that needed to be done. But since there wasn't enough time or resources or people to delegate to or scapegoat, none of them wanted to take on any responsibilities regarding the future.

________ _ _ _ _

If new battles arose, the most that could be done was to shake several very angry fists.

________ _ _ _ _

_And maybe some bows and arrows,_ Tessa thought with her scowl deepening.

________ _ _ _ _

It was understandable. Stopping Leonard and those associated with him from alternating the world's events to suit their liking had been physically, mentally and financially exhausting, and people were reluctant to extend their hands to others.

________ _ _ _ _

_But it's not_ excusable. _We have to cooperate with each other even more now, as we're rebuilding,_ Tessa thought.

________ _ _ _ _

She could imagine "Uncle" Jerome and Mr. Mardukas' restrained frustration as they spoke with and explained things to people, only to have them hesitate or outright refuse to cooperate or even to hear past a few words.

________ _ _ _ _

Didn't they understand how important this was? The battle was over. But the _problems_ still existed, waiting for someone to pick them up again.

________ _ _ _ _

This was not peacetime now. This was only a break between situations.

________ _ _ _ _

Not enough people cared.

________ _ _ _ _

" _Damn_ it," she whispered, then linked her fingers together and rested her thumbs on her forehead. "I could really do with a cup of that tea."

________ _ _ _ _

She hadn't told either man about her idea. No moment had seemed like the right one, and her plan wasn't complete anyway.

________ _ _ _ _

"But where can I find it? It shouldn't be this difficult. _But_ , it _would_ help if I could remember the name of it. I haven't tasted it for a very long time, though-"

________ _ _ _ _

She raised her head, and a weary-looking Michael walked into the room.

________ _ _ _ _

"At ease," she joked, but he didn't smile.

________ _ _ _ _

She frowned.

________ _ _ _ _

"What is it?" she asked, and indicated next to herself.

________ _ _ _ _

He scowled.

________ _ _ _ _

_How do I tell her? But she hates to waste time, _he thought.__

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Sorry, Miss Tessa, I'm too tired to sit. I've had to read too many reports, and..." he trailed off.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sensing that something was wrong beyond him being so tired, she stiffened a little, only her eyes moving as she looked into his.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"What is it, Mr. Lemon?"

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

The scowl became a frown.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I've heard a rumour...they want you to return to America," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Tessa's body weakened; she slumped, but with a brief look of irritation managed to remain where she was.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"No," she said softly, and listlessly watched Michael hurry over to sit next to her despite his weariness.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But you have to admit that you'd be better there than anywhere else now," he said softly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She uncharacteristically sneered.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Someone decided that I'd be more _useful_ there," she said bitterly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He exhaled softly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Tessa..." he said understandingly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She shook her head slowly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Just like that, I'm reminded that I'm just a girl," she said a little less harshly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He scowled.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Miss Tessa-"

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She interrupted with: "I thought that I could make a difference."

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He shook his head thoughtfully.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"It can't be like that," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She stared at him, and the intensity of the look made him wince.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Why_ can't it be like that?" she wanted to know.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You're more important than you think you are," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Her eyes widened, and she shook her head slowly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Really,_ " she said monotonously.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You helped to save the world," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She shook her head again.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"That...isn't sufficient," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Well, I guess they're just afraid of losing you, then," he said, and she looked at him sharply, but he still had a contemplative expression.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_He's sincere,_ she thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

After a few seconds, she looked straight ahead and sighed.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You...I'd have to let you go," she said, and he nodded.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I already know that I can't always be your assistant," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She tried a smile.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'll give you good recommendations," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Thank you," he said, then sighed. "But who else could I want to work for?"

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She sadly shook her head.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm sorry," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He exhaled again.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Well, I _could_ ask _those two_ to work for you _secretly_ , but they'd either kill me or laugh themselves to death or kick me so hard I'd land on my behind back home," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She frowned thoughtfully.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"So, become a spy," she suggested.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He chuckled.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"That's a good idea. It'd keep me from missing you - _ouch!_ " he added after she blushed, then smacked him.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Stop joking," she commanded.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He pouted.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I was _serious._ I really will miss you. And everyone else from Mithril that I met," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He sighed.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But I don't want to go back. Not to that same old life. _Risking_ my life like that. It wasn't...enjoyable," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She frowned thoughtfully again.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Then you should give it all up and move to a different country," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He scowled, then shook his head.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I don't want to _hide_ , either," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She exhaled softly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"So what _will_ you do?" she wanted to know.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He scowled, then slowly stood up.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I've been thinking about that for a long time. I still don't know. I suppose that I'll go back to what I was doing before, for now. To that same old life," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She looked at the little table.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I see..." she said softly.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He hesitated, then knelt to gently pat one of her shoulders.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

As she looked up he drew his hand back, then said: "It'll be all right, Miss Tessa."

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I suppose it will," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He suddenly froze in place.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Wh-what is it?" she asked a little nervously.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He frowned.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I just remembered that I have something else to take care of. I'm sorry, but I must leave you again," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She gave him a small smile.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"That's all right. I can manage without you for a while," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He bowed.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Thank you," he said, then slowly left the room.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She thoughtfully watched him leave.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"America..." she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

What could be waiting for her there?

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

The _Tuatha de Danaan_ had been her home for a long time, and now she was adjusting to living on land. How could she readjust to live in a country that she hadn't been in for several years?

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

But the reassignment hadn't happened yet, if it was _going_ to happen at all. At least she could plan for the possibility.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Maybe I'll even go there for a holiday,_ she thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But I'll be alone," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Then she frowned.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Am I lonely?" she wondered.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Her life hadn't had much room for feeling lonely, but she had managed to make some friends...all of whom were at the least a phone call away.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Without thinking about it, she reached for the phone receiver, then realised it and hesitated.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"What do I do _right now?_?" she wondered, then frowned.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I _must_ find that tea," she said, then picked up the receiver and began dialling a number.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

~Just outside of a well-appointed cream and brown bathroom with golden swirls on most of its edged surfaces~

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

After carefully closing the door, Kaname carefully moved around servers wearing swirl-edged black suits, swirl-framed golden serving carts of various sizes and walking diners until she saw the six-feet tall plate glass windows that took up one of the cream-coloured walls.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She paused briefly to smile at the city's night lights, then looked for the particular swirl-edged cream tablecloth on the golden swirl-edged brown wood table that Sousuke was still seated in one of the two golden-swirled brown wood chairs alongside of and walked towards it, barely noticing those who either smiled knowingly or frowned thoughtfully as they moved out of her path.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He was looking to his right at the stars with a thoughtful expression, but his eyes appeared to be gleaming and she wondered if that was from the lights - or - and this made her stop and fight not to worry - if he was going to cry and ruin the date.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Sousuke, if you mess this up I SWEAR I'll-_

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm all right, Kaname," he said softly, then stood up and walked towards her with a hand extended.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She sagged with relief, then blushed and walked towards him.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I should know better by now..._ she thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Well, okay, but who moved the chair? I'm supposed to sit _across_ from you again, you know," she said, then frowned as he firmly shook his head before taking her hand and leading her towards their table.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I want you right next to me, where you belong,_ he thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You belong right next to me," he said, then frowned and his eyes narrowed slightly at a passing female server who was blatantly staring at where Kaname was "supposed" to sit.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server's eyes widened, then she stuck her nose in the air and walked on.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname sighed, then let go of Sousuke's hand and sat down, keeping the purse next to her.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Yeah, I like sitting next to you, but we don't belong here,_ she thought before _really_ realising what Sousuke had said and blushing again.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Sousuke,_ " she whispered.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

His expression softened a little as he sat down.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm sorry. But I won't allow anyone to treat you with disrespect," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She opened her mouth to correct his misunderstanding, then changed her mind.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Y...you know what?" she asked.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Hm?" he asked.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She grabbed and squeezed his hand.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You don't need to ask," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He gently moved his hand so he could squeeze back.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I know, but I want to do this correctly,_ he thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But I _will_ ask," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I know," she said, then snuggled against him.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He looked at her, then frowned.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_We should start talking now,_ he thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Kaname-"

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Hmmmmmm?_ " she asked dreamily.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He winced at the prospect of ruining her mood.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Let's talk," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She pouted.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_This is_ it! _We're_ finally _going to say everything that we need to say to each other. But not yet, I want to enjoy this moment first,_ she thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"After we eat, all right?" she requested.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

He hesitated, then nodded.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"All right," he agreed, then nodded at an approaching male server, who was carrying a swirl-edged cream porcelain tea service and one folded letter-sized swirl-edged cream menu on a swirl-edged round silver tray.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname scowled before sitting up straight.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

One _menu?_ Damn it. _That's not right,_ she thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server briefly raised an eyebrow at her expression, then placed the tea service before Sousuke and gave him the menu.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Thank you," Sousuke said, then presented the menu to Kaname, who forced a sweet smile before taking it from him.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Thank_ you," she said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Both of Sousuke's eyebrows went up, but he nodded instead of verbally responding to her.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server's lips twitched; then he stood up straight and briefly inclined his head.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Sir, I will return when you are ready," he said very politely, then left them.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname exhaled, then said: "This place isn't what I was expecting it to be."

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke frowned thoughtfully.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I think they're aware of that," he said.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She scowled. Sousuke was behaving better here than _she_ was.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I mean..." she began.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"It's all right. What do you want to eat?" he asked her.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

She grinned, then winked at him and gave him the menu.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I wonder how well you know me?" she half-joked, then gently moved the tea service enough so that she could prepare two cups.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Oh - it's a bagged green tea. These people...I'll bet it's not even a high-quality brand! But that's all right. I'll just smile and be a good girl and give them a_ terrible _review later,_ she thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke frowned thoughtfully again, then looked over the menu, his eyes moving almost as quickly as Kaname was stirring.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

_She's worried about my condition, so she'd say that she wants whatever I'm going to order. I appreciate that. But they should be capable of offering something that both of us will enjoy,_ he thought.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname glanced at him, then frowned.

__________ _ _ _ _ _ _

__It's just dinner, Sousuke. You don't have to be so serious about_ this, too,_ she thought.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Then she smiled.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_But this is our first date, so I shouldn't be so hard on you,_ she thought.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Then she winced as she remembered Tessa's invitation.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_This might kill the mood. But I..._

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Uh, Sousuke?" she asked.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

He didn't look up from the menu.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Hm?" he asked.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Did you call her back?" she asked him.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

He winced.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"No...I disobeyed her by...I mean I forgot. No, I didn't _really_ forget. I just..." he said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

She shook her head slowly.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_He's really been distracted. But why doesn't that make me happy?_ she wondered.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Did you forget that you forgot?" she asked him.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

His eyes widened briefly.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"I think that's..." he said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

She gently shook a finger at him.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"That's insufficient, Mr. Sagara," she said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

He looked thoughtful again. Then he closed the menu, put it down and suddenly, without looking at her, grabbed her hand and kissed the top of it before releasing it.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

This _very_ uncharacteristic behaviour shocked her so much that she froze in place and even forgot to breathe for a few _very_ long seconds.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"You..." she finally managed to say, then anger and disappointment replaced shock and she began to stand up.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Which absolute cruel person had done this? Sophia? The ghost of Leonard? _Who?_

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Damn _you,_ whoever _you are! You could have at_ least _let us finish this date and go home first,_ you dirty son of a bitch! she thought.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

People were staring and whispering what she was certain were words that proved that she and Sousuke didn't belong here, but she didn't care.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke very firmly put a hand over hers, but she angrily tried to break free, so he released her, stood up, then embraced her.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"You were right. I'm sorry," he said more apologetically than necessary, and just loudly enough for at least some of those staring and whispering to hear.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

They hadn't actually had a disagreement, but if it was thought that they had and it was indeed his fault, then perhaps they wouldn't be shamed. However, it _was_ likely that they would be asked to move to a different table.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

She struggled, but although his hold was flexible it was no use fighting it. He wasn't going to let her go even if she hit him.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

And it was this that made her realise that this was real, that _he_ was real. Only the real Sousuke could be this stubborn and caring at the same time.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"It's all right," he said softly, then moved one hand to the back of her head, hesitated, then moved the hand to stroke her hair in an effort to calm the rapid pulse that he'd felt at her neck.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"No it isn't," she mumbled.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_He's still rough around the edges, but he knows how to behave even in places like this. He_ is _my Sousuke, and I have to trust him no matter what weird things he does,_ Kaname thought, and snuggled against him.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

But _he'd kissed her hand._ How _else_ was she expected to react?

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Sudden movement caught her eye - their apologetic-looking server was approaching quickly.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

She sighed, then gently pushed Sousuke away.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"I've caused a little trouble, so-" she began.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

He scowled, then nodded.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"I'd like to have a better view tonight," he said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

She smiled, then took one of his hands.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"I would, too," she said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

_________ _ _ _ _ _

The excuse for escorting them to one of the round cream-swirled black metal tables covered by cream tablecloths with golden swirl edges was "Perhaps madam would consider a more expansive view."

_________ _ _ _ _ _

This "more expansive view" included a cool starry evening, and Sousuke and Kaname briefly smiled at the sky. Then they exchanged frowns as he took off his suit jacket and placed it on her shoulders before she sat down on one of the two cushioned cream-swirled black metal chairs that were opposite from each other and placed the purse on the table.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

They're _the ones who want that view,_ both of them thought.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

The server saw that exchange and gently cleared his throat.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Sir, would you like to see the menu again?" he asked.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke shook his head, then carefully moved the other chair closer to Kaname's right, ignoring the server's wince at this action.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"That won't be necessary. We would like the baked chicken and vegetables. And also some unsweetened green tea, because there isn't enough room for a tea service here,"

_______he said politely, then sat on the other chair._ _ _ _ _ _ _

_________ _ _ _ _ _

The server cleared his throat again, then nodded.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Very good, sir," he said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_Quite the smart-aleck ruffian, isn't he? First he insults our graciousness, then he unnecessarily reminds us that we're not going to poison either himself or the young lady,_ he thought.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

He glanced at Kaname, who was taking her cell phone out of the evening purse and adjusting at least one of its settings.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke followed his gaze with briefly narrowed eyes, then added: "And we won't need to see the dessert cart. I apologise."

_________ _ _ _ _ _

The server's hands briefly closed into fists.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_He knows that he's almost at the limit of our patience. They're as uncomfortable being here as we are having them here. I will ask the chefs to work quickly, so that this situation will end peacefully,_ he thought.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"Yes, sir," he said.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

"We're sorry for all of the trouble we're causing for you," Kaname said sincerely, then put the phone back into the evening purse and gave him a sad look that made him restrain a scowl.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_I don't believe that for one second, young lady,_ he thought, then his eyes widened as Sousuke very slowly raised his eyebrows at him.

_________ _ _ _ _ _

_He's very protective of...no, he's in love with her. Well, I'm certainly not going to interfere with that. Indeed, we'll make a polite effort to have them leave quickly, _he thought.__

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He bowed.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Your concern is appreciated, madam. I will return with your choices," he said, then raised himself and left them again.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke exhaled.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Coming here_ was _a mistake, but we'll make the best of it,_ he thought.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"We'll talk later," he said.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname nodded.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I really thought that this would be a nice, romantic night for us. What a disappointment,_ she thought.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Yeah. You handled that well, by the way," she said.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He grinned, then blushed, then moved to lightly kiss her cheek.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Uhhhh..." she said as she blushed.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_The more time I spend with him, the more affectionate he is. Is_ this _how he would have been if he hadn't grown up around wars?_ she wondered.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Thank you," he said near her ear.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She reflexively tensed up at his closeness, but he seemed to ignore that as he lightly stroked her arm, then took her hand.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She glared at him. Was he sincerely behaving so sweetly, or was he trying to make her crazy?

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You know...you..." she began.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

His eyebrows went up, but his eyes showed amusement.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"What is it?" he asked her a little too innocently.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Her eyes narrowed.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm going to get you for this," she promised.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He grinned.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You haven't received enough training to be able to deal with me on a specialist level, Miss Chidori," he said.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Oh yeah? I still have a fan," she said.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

His eyes widened, then he began to chuckle. Then he began to laugh, and a few seconds later he was laughing out loud.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She couldn't help but smile at this. She'd never heard him laugh like that before, and it was both touching and good to see him be able to enjoy himself this way.

___________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

This _is Sousuke. And I'm going to do whatever I can to make sure that he can laugh like that forever, _she thought, then chuckled. _But I'll still hit him with the fan whenever I have to.___

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Then she looked up at the stars and the smile became dreamy.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Ah, I get it. It's the magic of the stars, or something. And it's our first date. It's all coming together and making this a beautiful night. And yeah, it's a little romantic, and I think he feels it too,_ she thought.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke coughed, then gradually stopped laughing.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname looked at him, then gasped, blushed and involuntarily sniffled at what looked like magic in his eyes...or perhaps it was just starlight.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

It didn't matter which it was. It was beautiful.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

In fact, the _whole world_ , even with all of its problems, was beautiful.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

His hold on her hand suddenly tightened, and she frowned before a nearly uncontrollable urge to jump on the table, or run without stopping, all the while yelling and screaming their happiness to the entire world, seized her.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But how did he know she wanted to do that? Did he want to do it as well?

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She frowned.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_No, it's just that he knows me very well,_ she thought.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

His hold lessened slightly, but she still wanted to jump and scream.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But there was no need to cause a real scene. He knew that he loved her, that she knew that he loved her, and that she loved him too.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

And as though all of this wasn't enough, there was a little magic in the eyes that were reflected in his.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She began to cry. She couldn't help it.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He didn't say anything, but his hand shifted to stroke her fingers, and she could swear that his fourth finger briefly lingered on hers.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She forgot that she was crying.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_It's the wrong hand but -_ could _he be thinking about..._ THAT? _she wondered, then blushed as her imagination gave her a vision of her in a wedding dress, and him in a tuxedo, walking arm-in-arm._

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She scowled, and it vanished.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_No. That's ridiculous. We can't, anyway._

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But what if...

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Why didn't someone made him a "real" person now? The world was safe, wasn't it? At least, no one wanted to kidnap her or kill him.

_____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_It's just so unfair,_ she thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke suddenly let go of her hand.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Huh-" she began, then saw the server approaching with their meals and frowned.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"It's all right," Sousuke said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She sagged a little.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I guess," she mumbled.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server restrained a frown as they straightened up.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I'm interrupting. Love makes everyone beautiful. Even these two. But the sooner they leave, the sooner they can do whatever they intend to do, as long as they don't come back_ here, he thought, then winced.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I'm being too harsh. They're not criminals. They're just young and a little foolish. Fortunately, they have realised that their behaviour is better suited for casual establishments,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But the wince remained in place. He was judging them based on their apparent ages and behaviour, which was unfair.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_They're not ruffians, either,_ he thought, then glanced at the other diners and sighed as a wavering woman snatched the half-full wine glass from her companion and finished the alcohol in a few careless gulps.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_Yes. Everyone makes mistakes,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server actually smiled as he set down the meal, and Sousuke watched him thoughtfully.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_He's realised that we're not going to destroy this place, but Kaname and I are still not welcome here,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server rose, then bowed.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Thank you, sir, madam. Please enjoy your meal," he said, then left them again.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname's eyebrows went up.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Well, he_ suddenly became nice to us," she said with some sarcasm.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke scowled.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_This won't happen again,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Kaname, _I'll_ choose the location of our next date," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She jerked, then glared at him.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Ohh no._ I am _not_ going to any kind of military show or display with you," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Unfazed, he looked directly into her eyes.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But before that, would you like to help me choose replacement furniture for my apartment before we study tomorrow?" he asked her.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The question and his assumption of what she would be doing tomorrow surprised her into a brief silence while she contemplated her response.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_So, we're back to_ that _, are we? But you were making progress!_ she thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She huffed, then scolded: "That's rude! I don't sit around waiting for someone to tell me what to do."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Then she facepalmed.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Honestly! _Why couldn't he just_ say _that he wants to spend more time with me?_ she wondered.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Sousuke..._ she said warningly, then sighed. "What am I going to do with you?" she asked him.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sensing acquiescence, he asked her: "So, what time should I pick you up?"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She glared at him again.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"How about tomorrow night?" she sarcastically asked.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He chuckled.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'll pick you up a little earlier than that," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She grimaced.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm not a morning person, you know," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He looked at her as though he intended to slowly savour her bones, and she blushed very deeply.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I know," he said very softly, then cleared his throat.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But his mood correction came too late; she edged away from him, then hurriedly began to eat.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He frowned, then also began to eat.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I want us to do a lot of things together,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But dating and spending other time together weren't enough to keep her by his side forever.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

What _else_ would? And would he know how to perform or behave appropriately then?

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I really haven't learned much at all. Maybe I need to ask Kurz,_ he thought, then winced.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But who else could he talk to about this?

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

They ate without talking until the wavering woman loudly belched and then soon was gently escorted away by her companion.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname commented on the woman's rudeness, Sousuke half-joked that it was an obvious distraction by an enemy, Kaname scolded him about bringing his work to their date, he reminded her that he was currently unemployed, she told him that she was also, and the conversation shifted to what each of them could do about finding work.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Her half-serious suggestion that he should become a crash-test dummy was interrupted by his cell phone ringing.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She glared at him as he scowled.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Why didn't _you_ put _your_ phone in silent mode?" she wanted to know, then rolled her eyes. "Let me guess. Either you're expecting a call from _someone_ , or you forgot."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He thoughtfully shook his head before taking his phone out of a pants pocket.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Someone_ wouldn't call me, I'd have to re-enlist, and I don't want to, so they're leaving me alone. It's either Tessa, or-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He looked at the screen and his eyebrows went up.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"-I don't recognise this number," he finished.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She shrugged.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"So, they can leave a message," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Yeah..." he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The phone rang twice more, then the voicemail indicator appeared about four seconds later.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Well, who was it?" Kaname asked, and Sousuke quickly complied with her request.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Then he frowned.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Your grandfather said that he's going to visit y-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname jerked. 

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _What?_ " she demanded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Sousuke scowled again.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_She's going to get mad at me again..._ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Kaname's eyes narrowed.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Didn't you say that no one has your phone number? But wait a minute."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She glared at him again.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"My calls are forwarded to your phone, aren't they?" she demanded to know.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded, and her hands shook.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"It's _over_ , Sousuke. I _mean_ , no one's going to kidnap me any more, or kill you," she said slowly.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Then her eyes widened, and her hands stopped shaking.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But, _that's_ not why, _is_ it? I can _see_ it."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She nodded thoughtfully.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Yeah. You're _jealous,_ " she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He winced.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"That's not-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You don't want anyone getting close to me, touching me, or even _looking_ at me without your permission," she interrupted him, then shook her head slowly. "That's-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm _worried_ ," he said, then looked at the sky.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She winced, then followed his gaze.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I should have known he'd say that. But it's still not an excuse for what he did,_ she thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'm upset because you did that without asking me," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He briefly inclined his head.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I know. I'm sorry," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She exhaled.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Sousuke, I can take care of myself," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I know. And you remained strong in an environment you hadn't received any training for. But-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Without looking at him, she took his hands.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You're going to be like that no matter what I say," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"If anything happens to you, and I could have prevented it-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I'd forgive you. Isn't that enough?" she interrupted him again, then shook her head as he prepared to speak again. "Even if those are my last words."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He winced.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She patted his hands.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You know what I meant," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_When you love someone, you feel what they feel. You worry more, and you hate more. And everything's a big deal,_ she thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Yeah," he said dully.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_You don't understand. I love you. I want to always be by your side so I can protect you. And I want you to always be with me no matter what happens. But I don't know how to ensure that,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Sousuke."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Yeah."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She looked at him and smiled shyly.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Let's hurry up and go home - I _mean_ -"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Yeah."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She blushed.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Then I'll call my grandfather, and tell him to come over for a visit, and you two can have a proper talk too," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He looked at her with a raised eyebrow, but he was also blushing.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_A "proper talk"? This might be even more trouble for me,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She cleared her throat.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"It'll be the three of us. Me, my grandfather, and..."

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She smiled softly.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_This is IT, isn't it?_ she thought, then cleared her throat again at the thought of fulfilled hopes becoming sweet dreams.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I can't help it. It's_ not _an illusion. He's here with me. Finally. Right now, and forever._

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"...my boyfriend," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

His eyes seemed to glow; then he playfully frowned and the glow faded away.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But I didn't ask you," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She let go of his hands to shake a finger at him.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I don't sit around waiting for someone to tell me what to do, Mr. Sagara," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"That was rude," he said, then wrapped some fingers around that still-shaking finger. "If you were an enemy I'd-"

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She laughed evilly.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Don't _tempt_ me, I know allll of your secrets," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He looked sad for an instant, then he got serious and released her hand.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Not yet. But you _will_ ," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_There's no one else I trust as much as you,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She also got serious, then she nodded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"I can handle yours, but can you handle _mine?_ " she asked.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You know that I will protect whatever you allow me to," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She blushed again.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_He means it,_ she thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

And why were they here, wasting time? There was so much they had to tell each other, and it needed to be done when they were alone.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

There would be many other beautiful nights for them to enjoy looking at together.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"Sousuke, let's _really_ be rude, and leave right now," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He blinked, then nodded, then reached into the others pants pocket to take out a wallet.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"But with your grandfather there, he and I might stay all night," he said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _He_ won't," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

His eyes widened, and he froze in place for a second or two before blushing _very_ deeply and fumbling with the money that he took out of the wallet.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

" _Kaname,_ " he barely managed to say.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She watched him finally be able to place the money on the table.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"We really do have a lot to talk about, Sousuke," she said.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded, then swallowed, stood up, and extended a hand to her.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_He won't be surprised. But he's not going to make it easy for me,_ he thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

She nodded, then took the hand and allowed him to help her stand up.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

"You ready?" she asked him.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He nodded.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

They shifted their hands a bit, then they walked towards the main seating area hand-in-hand.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_We_ did _it!_ she thought, then glanced at his unembarrassed, determined expression and restrained a proud grin.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_YEAH! We're ready,_ she thought.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

-FMPFTWT-

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

It just wouldn't do to be seen clearing away any evidence of their rudeness of not finishing their meal, so their server intentionally blended in with other servers as he walked through the main seating area towards the table that they had politely been moved to.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

It had been their bad luck to come to an eating establishment such that no matter where one was within the main seating area, it took just another person's notice for that person to be placed on an "evaluation of social acceptability" display within it.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

And for some reason, others had made certain that Sousuke and Kaname were kept within view as other diners stared and commented about them.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_He ignored them. He's certainly more courageous than_ I _am_ , the server thought with a restrained smile.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

He stopped before he reached the table, and turned to look.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_I wasn't seen. Good-_

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The staring had stopped, and some of the commenting diners had resumed eating.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

But other diners had chosen to talk about them, and in a derogatory manner.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The server's eyes narrowed; a few seconds later, he smirked.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

_They're_ jealous. _And to be honest, so am I,_ he thought, then turned back around and briefly froze in place at what he could currently see of just how much had been paid for the meal.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Thank _you, sir,_ he thought, then grinned. _For more than this,_ he added.

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

~con't in chp 1 pt 2/2~

____________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _


	2. Tea With Tessa: A Lovely Time Together, Part 2/2

~Front door of Kyouko's home~

Kyouko finished unlocking the door, then smiled at Ono-D.

"Thanks, I really had fun," she said.

Ono-D gave her a teasing grin.

"What, are you saying that this is the _first time_ that it's been fun?" he asked her.

She giggled, and the grin became a fond smile.

 _I like that we can joke around like this,_ he thought.

"Ah, you know that I mean it," she said around a few last giggles.

He nodded.

"Yeah. I'm glad," he said, then they blushed and their eyes widened in unison as he casually reached out to playfully tweak one of the little haircombs.

But neither of them stopped him, and he let it go a few seconds later.

She recovered first.

"Uhm..." she began.

He cleared his throat, then nodded.

"Uhm, yeah, so...we...it's okay, right? I mean...we decided to just see how things work out, right?" he asked.

She nodded.

"Yeah. Because we...can take our time, and get to know each other," she said.

He nodded, then took her hands in his and briefly squeezed them.

"Yeah," he said.

She smiled at him, but then frowned; his expression had softened, he'd let go of her hands and now suddenly he was leaning forwards.

She froze in place, then gasped and blushed anew as he kissed her forehead.

" _Ken,_ " she whispered.

"Y-yeah," he said nervously, then stood up straight; she could see that he was blushing too, and that made her relax a little, which was reflected in her soft smile. "Let's keep _that_ a secret, oh-okay?"

She hesitated, then nodded.

"I-I'll tell Kaname that we decided to date for a while," she said.

The teasing grin came back.

" _Just_ a while? _Oh-_ "

She lightly pushed him.

"Oh _you!_ " she said.

He got serious, then took one of her hands and squeezed it.

"See you tomorrow?" he asked.

She grinned, then nodded, then squeezed back.

"Yeah. And let's see that movie, okay?" she asked.

He nodded.

"Yeah. Tell her I said hello," he said.

Her eyes widened.

"Huh?" she asked.

He winked at her.

"It's tomorrow," he said.

She blushed again.

"I didn't notice what time it was," she said.

"You weren't _supposed_ to, so that means that you _did_ have a good time," he said, then let go of her hand.

She smiled at him again.

"Yeah. Good night, Ono-D," she said.

"Call me 'Ken', I like that," he said.

The smile deepened.

"Okay. Good night, _Ken,_ " she said.

He grinned.

"Good night, Kyouko," he said, then hesitated; he didn't want to leave, but they'd dragged their see-you-later out long enough.

And she was turning towards the door a little, so...

He frowned, then waved at her, then left before it became awkward.

 _Yeah. We'll see how this goes,_ he thought.

-FMPFTWT-

~Kaname's apartment~

Sousuke opened the front door, and Shujiro Komura could see that the younger man had changed as soon as they saw each other.

Though the now-fading wariness in Sousuke's eyes and his body relaxing into "at ease" position indicated that his training wouldn't ever leave him, Mr. Komura sensed a lightening of his personal burden, a muted happiness, and a sense of peace in him.

 _I wouldn't outright say that he's been tamed, but...yes, my granddaughter has definitely got her hooks in him,_ Mr. Komura thought.

"Good evening, young man," he said, and Sousuke smiled gently before saluting by reflex.

"Good evening, sir - _ouch!_ " he involuntarily added, as Mr. Komura tapped his head with his cane.

"You still have a lot to learn, I see. Stop being so formal! Unless there's a _reason_ you're behaving like this-"

" _Grandpa!_ " exclaimed a deeply blushing Kaname as she hurried over with a wooden cooking spoon in hand. "It's not like that."

 _Already, this isn't going well,_ she thought.

Mr. Komura cleared his throat, and Sousuke, gently touching the injured area, scowled at his accidental lack of manners and moved so that the older man could enter the apartment.

 _He's still the same,_ Sousuke thought.

Mr. Komura briefly stared at Kaname's abdomen.

Sousuke blushed and swallowed, and she gasped indignantly.

" _Grandpa,_ that's _not_ why you're here!" she scolded him.

"Is that so?" 

Her grandfather shook a finger at Sousuke.

"But there are standards to be met, and I'll toss you out if you're not even _close_ to meeting them!"

Sousuke recovered, and glared at him.

"What are you talking about? But why are you causing trouble again?" he demanded.

" _HEY!_ " Kaname demanded, and the two men looked to see her pointing the spoon at them.

"I'll toss _both of you_ out if you don't sit down and be nice to each other!" she promised.

Both men sensed her _This is a special night for me and you're_ ruining _it!_ mood, frowned, looked at each other, then at her and briefly inclined their heads.

"I'm sorry, Kaname," Sousuke said.

"Me too. I apologise," Mr. Komura said.

She sighed, closed her eyes, then pointed the spoon at the couch.

They obeyed without a word, and looked straight ahead as they put their hands in their laps.

Kaname sighed, but she didn't scold either of them further as she turned to walk into the kitchen.

 _They're acting like little boys. Ahhh, why do I have to play referee here? It's not fair! Tonight's supposed to be_ special! she thought.

-FMPFTWT-

~About fifteen minutes later~

The "little boys" were behaving well enough now to discuss the differences between ancient and modern fighting techniques, and Kaname gently smiled at them before taste-testing her quick-cooking pasta meal.

 _Ahhh, it's ready,_ she thought, then looked at them again.

"Come on, let's eat now," she said, then began to prepare three servings.

Sousuke hurried to help her, and Mr. Komura smirked before walking over to sit at the closest end of the table.

Kaname blushed, and elbowed Sousuke.

"You're not trying to _impress_ him, are you?" she whispered.

Sousuke scowled.

"No."

She blinked at him.

"But...you've been so _helpful_ , uhm, lately," she said.

He frowned at her.

"I'm _always_ helpful," he said, then picked up two of the plates and forks and walked towards the table.

She frowned thoughtfully.

"Yeah, but...I guess I'm not saying it properly..." she muttered.

 _I mean...if he wasn't a soldier he'd be a good-_

"Why are you just standing there? Don't you want to eat? Or is something wrong with the food? Ahh, I'm just joking," her grandfather said, and scowled at the glare Sousuke gave him as he set the plates and forks down.

"I'm just lightening the mood in preparation for what'll come later," Mr. Komura said.

"That's not necessary," Sousuke said, then stood up straight and turned just in time to be able to surprise-kiss Kaname on the cheek, which made her blush and tremble and nearly drop the plate and fork she was carrying.

"S- _Sousuke!_ " she finally managed to say.

He gently took the plate and fork from her, set these the opposite end of the table, helped her to sit down, briefly squeezed her hand, then walked over to the 'fridge.

Mr. Komura snorted.

 _I bet he didn't need much practise to get that kiss on target. But she's tamed him, all right,_ he thought.

"You'll have to do better than that to convince me," he said.

Kaname, now recovered, sighed.

" _Grandpa..._ -"

He frowned at Sousuke's back as the younger man rummaged through the 'fridge, then scowled at his granddaughter.

 _Why is she letting him do that? Why is he so familiar with what's in there? Did he pay for any of it? Or did he put some of his own things in there?_ he wondered.

"Don't ' _Grandpa...' me._ When is he going to get a job? What about college? Are you thinking about living together?" he asked.

Kaname glared at him. 

" _Grandpa-_ "

"Kissy-pooing doesn't pay the bills. I want to know how he's going to support you. Or will you have to support him when his money runs out? You have to think about this! This is your future! What will happen after you get married-"

Kaname gasped and sounds of glass heavily tapping against glass came from inside the 'fridge at almost the exact same instant.

" _Grandpa!_ We - we're not going to get married-"

" _Damn_ it, old man..." Sousuke muttered, then slowly backed out with three glass bottles of juice pressed against his chest and closed the 'fridge door, revealing a heavily scowling and blushing face

Mr. Komura's eyes narrowed.

" _Why_ aren't you going to get married?" he asked dangerously.

Kaname glared at him again.

" _Two_ reasons, and the first one is, we're not gonna move too fast!" she said, then watched Sousuke walk towards the table.

"And the _second_ one is-"

"I'm not ready," Sousuke gently but firmly interrupted in a tone meant to end this line of questioning, then carefully gave Mr. Komura a juice bottle and put the other two near "his" spot on the table.

Kaname gave him a grateful look - the circumstances regarding his identity could be kept quiet for at least a little longer - and he acknowledged the look with a brief smile before sitting down.

His tone of voice was ignored; Mr. Komura gave him a Superior Officer stare as he put the bottle down.

" _Oh?_ So what's keeping you?" the older man demanded.

"Preparations," Sousuke said, ignoring the stare, then gave one of the last two juice bottles to Kaname, who put it down without taking her eyes off of the two men. "And, also, I'm going to live as a civilian," he finished.

Mr. Komura's eyes widened. Then they narrowed again.

" _Impossible._ You can't just walk away from it," he said disapprovingly.

Sousuke frowned at him.

"I've thrown away my weapons," he said.

Mr. Komura didn't say anything more for a few long seconds. Then he grinned, and stuck a hand out to Sousuke.

"You're taming him well, Kaname."

Sousuke blushed again, then took Mr. Komura's hand.

Kaname blushed again, then sputtered.

"What are you saying - I didn't - I haven't - I - you - he - no - _wait a minute-_ "

"And, Sousuke Sagara-"

"Yes, sir?"

Mr. Komura _squeezed_ Sousuke's hand for about five seconds, which the younger man withstood without even a blink.

"I don't completely trust you yet. But I know you'll take good care of my granddaughter," Mr. Komura said.

Sousuke swallowed, then nodded.

"Y-es, sir-"

The older man's eyes narrowed again.

"Are you _sure_ that you haven't _already_ -"

Kaname's eyes blazed, and at the same time Sousuke squeezed Mr. Komura's hand until faint cracking sounds could be heard.

" _GRANDPA!_ " Kaname yelled.

" _Let me go!_ This is no way to treat a honoured guest!" Mr. Komura yelled.

-FMPFTWT-

~Living Room, Sousuke's apartment~

Kurz shook his head slowly as he lowered the long-range binoculars he was holding.

"Damn it, Sousuke, you can't stop causing trouble for others, can you?" he asked.

"What was that?" Melissa asked as she flung two overstuffed fifty-gallon black garbage bags onto what served as Sousuke's bed.

Kurz smirked.

"Sousuke hasn't changed," he said.

Melissa rolled her eyes.

"I guess you haven't either, because I _thought_ you were going to help me with all this stuff," she said, then walked over to him and bounced a fist off the top of his head.

He cringed.

" _Ouch! Damn it,_ Melissa!"

She walked away, and he glared at her rear end as he stood up.

"Bitch...why can't you just give me some love-taps?" he asked it.

She rolled her eyes.

"Just hurry up and get the rest of it in here," she said.

He glared at her face.

"You can't order me around any more, you know," he said.

"Oh yeah? You think I always outranked you because I'm a dumb-ass? _Get moving,_ " she commanded, then pointed at the front door.

He kept glaring at her.

"Was that supposed to hurt? But I'm not stupid either. It's late, he's still there, and we both want to hang around to see if they'll do something _good_ tonight-"

" _Ahh!_ " 

She blushed, then strode over to him and pushed him towards the front door.

He allowed it.

"You didn't stop me when I picked up these binoculars, even when I told you they're long-range-"

"Just GO!"

He suddenly smirked, and his eyes twinkled.

"I picked up another one when you weren't looking-"

"Get your ass-"

"Look in my gear-bag-"

" _KURZ_..."

"We've got all night, you know. Maybe we could-"

" _HELL_ no!"

He suddenly got serious, and straightened himself when she let him go.

"You're right. We need to get our own place."

This surprised her into only being able to stare at him for a few seconds.

"Huh _what?_ "

He kissed her cheek.

"Think of some nice neighbourhoods, all right?"

He was gone within her next blink.

-FMPFTWT-

~Ten minutes later, open front door of Kaname's apartment~

Mr. Komura kept his cane under one arm while gingerly holding his still-injured hand in the other hand.

He also kept trying to glare at Sousuke, who was sitting on the couch and uncharacteristically muttering, but Kaname kept blocking his view.

"What is _he_ upset for? He could have _killed_ me!" Mr. Komura said, then pouted.

Kaname exhaled.

"He was protecting me, Grandpa. And besides-"

"I thought he was a nice guy. I take back my blessing, " Mr. Komura said.

Kaname rolled her eyes.

"I'll call you again soon, Grandpa," she said.

He scowled.

" _Hmph._ You want this old man to leave so you can do some kissy-pooing."

Kaname blushed, then facepalmed.

" _Grandpa..._ "

He tried to look at Sousuke again.

"Good luck getting him to shut up," he said.

Kaname sighed.

"It's all right, I can deal with him. Good night, Grandpa," she said.

He suddenly looked her over thoughtfully.

"I know. You're very strong, Kaname. And you've done well. I'm very proud of you," he said, then bowed.

"Uh - thanks-"

She also bowed.

He grinned at her as he straightened himself.

"Good night, and be happy with him," he said.

"Uh - thanks. And good night," she said, then watched him leave.

A few seconds later, she heard him whistling a tune she recognised as the love scene music from an old war movie.

She blushed again.

"How come _he_ knows something like _that?_ " she wondered, then went back into the apartment and closed the door.

Then her knees wobbled.

 _We're alone now._ All alone. _Sousuke and I are alone,_ she realised.

A now-concerned Sousuke looked at her, then got up and walked over to her.

She reflexively put her hands up to stop him.

"No, wait-"

 _This is why Grandpa was whistling that song. He knew it was going to be like this, and he was telling me to be brave. But_ how? _did he know?_

__

"-I'm fine, it's okay, I'm just a little tired-"

__

_I thought I was ready for this. But Kyouko was right. It's different_ this _time,_ too. _Hey, how did_ she _know?_

__

"It's been a long day, you know? Yeah, you _do_ know, don't you?"

__

She looked at their clothing.

__

"We didn't even change, you know? _Hey_ -"

__

He gently scooped her up, then carried her to the couch.

__

_She_ is _a little tired, but I don't understand why she's also nervous,_ he thought.

__

"We can do that later," he said, then carefully laid her down so she could see the television and sat near her head.

__

_I don't mind those two being in my apartment, but I don't think they're going to see whatever they're expecting to happen,_ he thought.

__

" _Mmmmm._ Sousuke..."

__

Kaname shifted until the side of her head was on his thigh.

__

"Mm," he responded.

__

"I'm sorry Grandpa gave you so much trouble," she said.

__

He shook his head dismissively.

__

"It's all right," he said.

__

"I thought you two were good friends," she said.

__

He scowled.

__

"You're his granddaughter, so he's going to protect you against any perceived threats, he said."

__

She scowled.

__

"I'm not a little girl, I don't need him to protect me."

__

She blushed deeply, then rolled onto her back and reached her right hand up to touch Sousuke's face.

__

"But _you'll_ always protect me, right?" she asked.

__

He blushed, then nodded, then lowered his head until she could rest her palm on the left side of his face.

__

Their eyes met.

__

"Yes, always," he said very softly.

__

"I love you, Sousuke," she said, also very softly.

__

He turned his face to kiss her palm, then he gently lifted it away so he could kiss the back of her fingers, then her hand, then her wrist.

__

"I love you too," he whispered, then raised her hand to kiss her forearm.

__

Her eyes widened.

__

_No - wait-_

__

"Ah, ah, Sousuke, what are you _doing?_ " she said as nervously as she felt.

__

He blinked, blushed again, then abruptly released her hand.

__

_What_ am _I doing?_ he wondered.

__

She winced.

__

_But if I hadn't stopped him-_

__

"I'm sorry," he said.

__

She restrained the sudden urge to smack him.

__

_That's the_ worst _thing to say about it!_ she thought, then cleared her throat a little.

__

"It...it's okay. I mean, you know, it was the mood...we can't let ourselves get carried away, you know?" she said.

__

He nodded.

__

"I know. I'll be more careful," he said.

__

She winced again.

__

_I kinda wish you_ wouldn't _be,_ she thought, then nodded and faked a stretch.

__

_I'd better change before we forget to be careful,_ she thought.

__

"Can you find something to watch? I'm going to change," she said.

__

He suddenly looked irritated, and she frowned at him.

__

"What is it - _Hey!_ Hey, now-"

__

He slipped an arm around her.

__

"Stay with me," he said.

__

She tried to restrain herself from snuggling against him.

__

"I'm not _leaving_ , I just need to-"

__

" _Please._ I need you to be close to me," he said.

__

She hesitated, then nodded and let herself get comfortable.

__

"It's because we were apart for so long, isn't it? I missed you too. I tried to forget you, but you were with me the whole time," she said.

__

"It's all right. We're here now. And no one's going to take you away from me again," he said.

__

She looked up at him suspiciously.

__

"What _did_ happen to you while we were separated?" she wanted to know.

__

He hesitated, then nodded at her.

__

"I'll tell you _everything,_ " he said.

__

She nodded firmly.

__

" _Yeah. I'm_ ready to tell _you_ everything, too," she said.

__

He gave her a proud smile, then began to talk.

__

-FWPFTWT-

__

~Living room in Sousuke's apartment~

__

Melissa lowered the long-range binoculars, then scowled.

__

" _Man,_ he _really_ doesn't know anything, _does_ he? They're not even _kissing_ , damn it!"

__

She sagged.

__

"He was showing some promise before...I don't get it," she said sadly.

__

Kurz, standing in the open front doorway, sighed heavily.

__

"Come _on,_ Miss Fremont, let's _go_ ," he said impatiently, referring to Grace Kelly's character in the movie _Open Window._

__

_Maybe he's not doing anything because of us,_ he thought.

__

Melissa sighed.

__

"Okay, okay. I guess _she_ has to teach him. Too bad we're gonna miss seeing _that,_ " she complained.

__

Kurz's eyes narrowed.

__

"Don't say it," he warned her.

__

She ignored him.

__

"He'll 'salute' her more than anyone else. Tessa included-"

__

" _Argh! Stop_ that!"

__

Kurz strode over and snatched the binoculars out of her hand.

__

"Now _come on,_ let's give them some privacy," he said.

__

She snatched the binoculars back, then looked at him with surprise, wonder and suspicion.

__

"When did _you_ start caring about their privacy?" she asked.

__

He looked sad for a few seconds.

__

_I envy them,_ he thought.

__

"I've been thinking...they've been through a _lot._ I want them to be happy. They deserve it," he said. 

__

Her eyes widened, then she nodded and grinned.

__

"Yeah. They do," she said, then noticed he was sticking a hand out to her and took it.

__

"Let's go," she said, then suddenly frowned.

__

__Any second now... she thought.

"Kurz..."

His eyes twinkled.

She sighed.

"...I knew it..."

He eased her into standing, then grandly put his other palm on his chest.

"Of _course_ , if she ever needs a shoulder to cry on - _damn it,_ Melissa!"

She was squeezing his hand as though her own hand was a vise.

They briefly struggled, then he freed himself and pouted as he examined his hand, to which the circulation was slowly returning.

" _You_ haven't changed, either," he mumbled.

She walked towards the front door, bumping him aside along the way.

"Why should I? I like myself how I am," she said.

Kurz exhaled, then carefully flexed all of his fingers and followed her.

"Problem is, so do I," he muttered.

She frowned, then stopped short.

 _But why does it bother me?_ she wondered.

He scowled, then walked around her.

"Move that ass," he ordered, and she involuntarily tensed up as a tingle teased her from hips to toes.

_I can't help it. When he talks like that-_

She walked around him.

_-It reminds me that I-_

" _Jerk, I'm_ always in front," she said.

"Heh. You're not kidding. Even _then_ you want to be in charge," he said disagreeably.

She reached the door first, and glared at him.

"What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?!" she demanded.

He waited for her to open the door.

"I don't like _everything_ about you, just like you don't like everything about _me,_ " he said.

"So freaking _what?_ " she wanted to know.

" _So,_ stop running away from me-"

"What the _hell_ are you talking about?!" she shouted.

He sighed, then folded his arms across his chest.

"Yeah, that's how you are. You think you've got something to prove. You want to show the world that you're in complete control of your life. And you jump in and stop people - _me especially_ \- because you think I'm going to hurt you. But that's life, Melissa. You win some, you lose some. And _I_ want to go through all that with you. But you won't let me. You wouldn't even tell me if you were pregnant until the last minute - no, I know you're not. At least, I don't _think_ you are. I mean, you've bought at least ten kits behind my back already, so that means you're not, right? Damn, you haven't asked me if I want a kid either," he said.

Her eyes widened. Then she stared at him.

_He's right. But..._

" _Kurz...?_ "

He looked away.

"It's no good asking me anything _now,_ ", he said firmly, but his hands were shaking a little.

She winced and scowled, but suddenly began to cry anyway.

"I'm _not_ weak. I'm _NOT!_ Damn it, stop crying!" she told herself.

He didn't move to comfort her - both of them knew she'd reject that.

Instead, he unfolded his arms, gently moved her aside so he could open the door, let her leave the apartment first, locked and closed the door behind himself, then very lightly rested a hand on her lower back.

She nodded, and they left the area.

-FWPFTWT-

~7 AM, Kaname's apartment~

Kaname, with her head on Sousuke's right shoulder, was beginning to tell him about Sophia when her alarm clock announced that it was time for her to get up.

Both of them jerked a little. Then, not appreciating the interruption, he scowled.

 _What an interesting coincidence,_ she thought, then conveniently yawned.

"I'm sorry, it's a habit. I forgot that I set it," she said, then smiled. "Good morning," she added.

"Mm. Good morning," he said, then shifted until he could kiss the top of her head.

She blushed, then scowled.

 _I have to teach him how to say it to me_ properly _-_

__

"Uh, Sousuke-"

__

"Yeah? Are you ready to finish what you were telling me?"

__

She scowled again.

__

_He's too much!_

__

"Not _yet-_ wait - I have to show you something-"

__

" _Huh?_ "

__

Sensing that she was plotting something, he gently moved so he could watch her, but this only made it easier for her to hold his face in her hands and pull him closer.

__

" _This_ is how you're supposed to say 'Good morning' to me, _idiot_..."

__

He blushed - just a little, she noticed - _He's starting to get used to this!_ she thought - and smiled before showing him.

__

A few seconds later, she reflexively pulled back a little and wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders.

__

_What is this..._ she wondered.

__

He grunted, then pressed his hands to her back and gave _her_ a "lesson".

__

She gasped.

__

_Who would have thought that he knows this much?_ she wondered, then remembered the earlier kiss that could have continued in a horizontal position.

__

_I want you here, Sousuke...in my heart...everywhere..._

__

He grunted again, then pulled away. He was trying to be careful.

__

She pulled him back.

__

To _hell_ with careful.

__

But wasn't this supposed to be a _very very_ romantic moment, with lace and soft sheets and champagne and roses and soft music?

__

And wasn't her alarm clock still going off?

__

She tried to ignore it, but it was as though it knew she was paying attention to it; it seemed to get louder and louder.

__

Finally, she'd had enough, and regrettably released Sousuke, who nodded a little before gently and completely pulling away.

__

_That clock is annoying,_ he thought, avoiding looking at Kaname because her sudden difficulty to breathe and the look of interrupted arousal in her eyes was tempting him to do much more than kiss her.

__

"I...I..." he began, then scowled. He was also having trouble breathing.

__

Her eyes widened, then she blushed while also looking away.

__

_He's_ sexy _when he's..._ ready. _And I_ felt _it. I felt Sousuke's..._

__

And now she was imagining him taking a shower, with soap and water dripping from all of his curves and muscles...

__

It wasn't as though she'd never been aware of his body. But to think of it in _such detail_ was...just... _very distracting._

__

But it was all right for her to think about it now, wasn't it? Because they were adults, and they were in love, and they were seeing each other...

__

_More importantly, we've been through hell and back. And we know each other better now, we've told each other everything. Isn't that all enough? Doesn't that make someone grow up faster?_ she thought.

__

"I, uh..."

__

She gently moved away from him.

__

"...I'll turn it off. Then I'll change, and take a shower..."

__

He nodded, then cleared his throat.

__

Damn _it. Are we_ always _going to be interrupted?_ he wondered.

__

He hadn't wanted to stop, and pulling away had been a test of self-control. When she had pulled him back, he'd almost failed that test.

__

He still wanted to thoroughly examine her with all of his senses.

__

But most of all he wanted to become one with her, and that was deepened because they'd had the most important conversation of their lives.

__

Words indeed would never be enough. How better to express his gratitude, respect, and love to her?

__

_Kaname, you're the most important person in my life,_ he thought.

__

"Y-yeah. I'll go back to my apartment-" he began.

__

"Um-" she interrupted, and blushed again, "why don't you bring your clothes and stuff for the day here, and...because...you see..."

__

She couldn't finish the sentence, and winced.

__

_Damn it! I thought this would so easy!_ she thought.

__

He also blushed, then nodded again.

__

_I understand. I feel the same way,_ he thought.

__

"Yes ma'am, I'll be right back," he said.

__

She sagged a little, then glared at him.

__

"Can't you call me something more _appropriate_?" she asked him, then winced - wouldn't it sound weird, coming from _him?_

__

_He's not used to it, so it would sound so..._ mechanical, she thought.

__

He frowned.

__

"You're my partner, isn't that enough?" he asked.

__

She sighed.

__

"We'll work on it," she said.

__

"Okay," he said, then lifted her chin with a forefinger and leaned in to kiss her.

__

"Mmmm, I won't stop until you get it right," she said.

__

"No problem," he said close to her mouth.

__

But she scowled.

__

"You're just gonna let me... _change_ you like that?" she wanted to know.

__

He nodded.

__

"Because I trust you," he said.

__

She already knew that, but for some reason that made her heart beat faster, and she sniffled.

__

" _Sousuke..._ "

__

She fell into his arms, and he blushed when he noticed that at some point during the "lessons" he'd unfastened her dress a little.

__

He _carefully_ fixed the problem, then yawned.

__

_She won't mind, if I just...for a little..._

__

His sudden silence and soft, even breathing made Kaname pull back a little.

__

" _Huh?_ Sousuke? Did you fall asleep?..."

__

He grunted, and she shook her head slowly before gradually freeing herself.

__

"How can _you_ of all people ignore the alarm clock like that? But I have to turn it off, before someone thinks something's wrong and calls the police. And I want to change, too," she said.

__

But she hesitated once she was standing.

__

_Awww, he's so cute like that, but I've got to go,_ she thought, then bent to kiss his forehead.

__

"I'll be back soon, all right?"

__

He seemed to nod, but she hurried to her bedroom before he woke up to make certain that she was telling him the truth.

__

_But that's a lie. I want to hurry up so he can hold me again,_ she thought.

__

-FMPFTWT-

__

~A few minutes later~

__

She wasn't surprised to see him sleepily watching her when she walked back into the living room, now wearing her pyjamas.

__

"I missed you," he said.

__

Her eyes widened and she briefly froze in place as that simple phrase weakened her knees.

__

"Uhhh, I...you could have...I mean...I was only gone for a minute," she managed to say.

__

His mouth opened so he could correct her, but he closed it again.

__

_She wouldn't appreciate it,_ he thought.

__

He opened his mouth again to say: "I should change clothes too."

__

"Oh?" she asked, then winked at him to indicate that she was going to tease him. "Aren't you supposed to be looking out for enemies?"

__

He grinned, then stood up to hold her.

__

"I haven't walked away from _that._ It's fine now. But I'll be back soon," he said.

__

She snuggled against him.

__

_I'll never, ever get tired of us being just like this,_ she thought.

__

"Yeah. Then I'll get ready, and _you'll_ get ready-"

__

He winced as he felt his body react to what he had involuntarily begun to imagine: Kaname beginning to take off the pyjamas with one hand while checking the shower-water temperature with the other.

__

She gasped indignantly, then pushed him away.

__

_That was his-_

__

" _Sousuke!_ I-if you can't behave yourself, get ready at your own place from now on!" she said.

__

He scowled.

__

_I'm not going to commit to a promise I don't intend to keep,_ he thought, then blushed.

__

"It's not what you think," he said quietly.

__

She glared at him.

__

"So what _is_ it?" she demanded to know.

__

"I..."

__

He hesitated to be certain that he expressed himself properly.

__

"...I always want to be with you. It's always been that way. And...I want that more, now. Because of what we said to each other. And...I want to tell you, no, _show_ you that you...how _much_ you've...made my world better," he said, then sagged. He'd reached his limit; he couldn't say it better than that.

__

Telling her that he loved her was easier than explaining it.

__

But why was this so?

__

She watched him lose himself in his thoughts.

__

"Ah, Sousuke...I want that too. But I can't relax thinking that you might...want to come in while I'm getting ready," she said, then winced.

__

" _Damn it_! I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way-"

__

He frowned, then looked at her.

__

_Going forward together isn't going to be easy,_ he thought.

__

"You don't have to apologise. I understand," he said.

__

She sagged.

__

"You're either crazy or wonderful," she said, then scowled and added: "At least you're not trying to drag me off by my hair."

__

His frown deepened. He didn't understand _that._

__

" _Huh?_ "

__

"Never mind."

__

She grabbed his right hand with her left one, then walked to the front door.

__

"Just hurry back," she said.

__

He nodded.

__

"Yeah. I will," he said.

__

She reluctantly let his hand go so he could open the door, then smiled at him.

__

"You're _both,_ " she said.

__

He stole a kiss.

__

"I'll be whatever is necessary to stay by your side," he said.

__

She nodded.

__

"I know," she said.

__

_And it's strange, but I like that,_ she thought, then shakily stole a kiss.

__

_Hmm. It feels different when you've settled a disagreement. It's more...satisfying,_ he thought, then kissed her again to test that theory.

__

She reached up to weave some fingers in his hair.

__

_It feels like we're making up after a fight,_ she thought.

__

"Mmm-"

__

She gently broke the kiss.

__

_I don't want to let him go, and he feels the same,_ she thought.

__

"-Sousuke-"

__

He hesitated.

__

_How is it that I know what she's thinking? But I don't want her to see my apartment before it's ready,_ he thought.

__

She frowned.

__

"I know you could probably hear a pin drop in there, but I still..."

__

She blushed.

__

He sagged a little.

__

_I want to refuse, but I can't. Why? Anything she wants, I'm going to comply,_ he thought, then nodded and took her hand.

__

"Okay, but it's a little messy," he said.

__

She firmly shook her head.

__

"I don't care," she said, then quickly looked him over. "I can at least pick out something for you to wear. You have _no idea_ , you know?"

__

He scowled, but let that go.

__

"All right, let's go," he said.

__

She scowled, then looked herself over.

__

"I should change," she said.

__

He hesitated, then nodded.

__

_One day, I'll..._

__

He would _what?_

__

He frowned. He wasn't certain of what, but it had something to do with the future. _Their_ future.

__

"Okay," he said a little too quickly.

__

She raised her eyebrows.

__

"I'm not going to forget, you know," she said.

__

He nodded.

__

_For once, I'm glad that she misunderstood,_ he thought.

__

"I really don't mind," he said.

__

She was beginning to walk away. She stopped to scowl at him.

__

" _Uh-huh._ But it's okay. I'm still gonna straighten you out," she said.

__

He nodded again.

__

"Yes, ma'am," he said.

__

She sighed, rolled her eyes, then turned back around.

__

" _Still_ hopeless," she said.

__

-FMPFTWT-

__

~Hallway leading to Sousuke's apartment~

__

His eyes suddenly narrowed, he let go of Kaname's hand, and he used a forearm to press her against the wall, not seeming to hear her whispered protest about his behaviour being acceptable except that her hair, t-shirt and jeans might have gotten dirty.

__

"And I'm not wearing socks with my sneakers either," she reminded him, but he didn't seem to hear this either.

__

She scowled.

__

_Damn it...but there's no one there, right?_ she thought, winced, then uncomfortably settled for glaring at him to counteract a growing nervousness.

__

He didn't seem to notice this, either.

__

_Something's different. Is there a bomb in there?_ he wondered, then moved the arm away and slowly walked the rest of the way.

__

She knew well enough by now that she was supposed to stay put until he said "Clear" or something like that, but what if an enemy grabbed her while they were separated?

__

_I'm really starting to think like him,_ she thought, then slowly walked towards him.

__

He waited until she was almost within reach before using a hand gesture to ask her to stop.

__

_Wait..._ he thought, then slowly took out his keys while mentally preparing for a fist-fight.

__

She winced again, then held her breath.

__

__No, I'm okay. I can handle this. But please..._ please_, don't let there be any enemies in there...don't make these moments with him just a dream! she thought.

Slowly, carefully, he slid in the front door's key and turned it, then waited for a few seconds.

"No explosive in the lock," he whispered, then slowly and carefully opened the door.

Kaname slowly let out a breath of relief, then rested her hands on his back.

"Clear?" she asked.

He frowned.

_Something isn't right. I need to check the entire apartment._

"No. Not-"

He froze in place, and Kaname winced.

"What is it? What's wrong? Sousuke! Please, _please_ don't tell me it's an enemy-"

He flicked his left hand, and the door swung open to show the small assortment of unsealed boxes and overstuffed black garbage bags that "those two" had brought in.

"What the _hell?_ " Sousuke and Kaname asked at the same time, then looked at each other and scowled.

"Miss Melissa and Kurz?" Kaname asked.

Sousuke exhaled, then nodded.

Kaname shook her head slowly.

"I _figured_ as much. But they're the only ones who would do that anyway."

She walked towards the closest garbage bag and knelt in front of it.

"At least they care about you. But are you going to change the lock?" she asked.

He nodded.

"I want to have control over who has a copy of the key," he said.

She hesitated, then got to work on the knot that secured the bag.

 _He means that he doesn't want Tessa, Miss Melissa or Kurz, or anyone really, to come here uninvited again. That's comforting,_ she thought, then frowned at the knot's resistance to her efforts.

"Hey, Sousuke, help me with this knot," she said.

He frowned.

"Why not just-"

She exhaled.

"Because we can reuse the bags," she said.

"Oh, I see-"

"And they're _good, quality_ bags. Come on, don't just stand there, be useful," she said.

He nodded, walked over and undid the knot within five seconds.

She shook her head slowly.

"You're good for _something_ ," she said.

He chuckled, then easily lifted up the bag and upended it.

Kaname gasped.

"Wait-"

"It's nothing valuable."

"But _still-_ "

Several pairs of camo-style pants in a variety of prints tumbled out of the bag, followed by at least twenty plain black and white t-shirts and then ten pairs of jeans.

Sousuke's eyebrows went up.

Kaname shook her head slowly.

 _Well,_ this _makes it easy to choose an outfit for him today,_ she thought.

"So, what's in the _other_ bags?" she asked.

Sousuke shrugged.

 _It's already too much,_ he thought.

"Provisions, I guess," he said.

She shook her head.

"No, those would be in the _boxes._ But I know what you're thinking. It's already too much for a minimalist like you, right?" she asked him.

He nodded, then knelt to organise the clothing.

She put a hand on his arm to stop him.

"Don't bother yet, I'm sure there's a lot more clothes. Just set them in three piles and let's open up the rest of the stuff, all right?"

He nodded.

"Yeah, let's get this all sorted out," he said.

"Wait-"

She grabbed a black t-shirt and a pair of camo-pants.

"Change, first. Let's not get that suit dirty," she said.

"Thanks."

He took the clothing from her, then rose and looked at the rest of the "delivery".

Then, suddenly, he had a vision of the area being a lower-floor room in a house with a small garden in the back.

_What-_

"Hey, you need a break already?" Kaname teased him, which brought him back to the moment.

"No. I was just thinking..." he said.

"Ahhh, I'm sure they thought about how much room there is in here. Don't worry, everything will fit - or I'll _make_ it fit!" she added with a bit of laughter.

He grinned at her.

"I'm sure it will," he said, then walked towards another of the garbage bags.

 _But what was that house I saw?_ he wondered, then blushed.

 _Was it_ our _house?_

No. That was ridiculous. They couldn't have a house.

 _Not_ yet, he thought, and the blush deepened.

He could afford to buy a house, but he wasn't a Japanese national - in fact, he wasn't an official citizen of _any_ nation.

And _that_ presented a large problem.

But why was he worrying about such a thing _now?_

 _Because of_ her _, he thought. _I need to get my life sorted out, I need to get settled. So that I really can spend the rest of my life with her.__

__

But if he got that process going it would include school aptitude placement tests...including ones for high school.

__

Sousuke sighed as he imagined Principal Tsuboi's - and the other teachers' - reactions to having to deal with him all over again.

__

But it was better now. And with Kaname beside him everything would only get better.

__

He smiled a little dreamily, knelt, put the t-shirt and camo-pants down and easily undid this bag's knot, then stood up with it to upend it.

__

Yes. It would entirely be worth it.

__

"Hey, what do you have there?" Kaname asked, looking over to see.

__

"I don't know yet..." Sousuke began, then upended it.

__

Towels, toiletries and bedsheets tumbled out of this bag.

__

Sousuke winced.

__

Kaname briefly facepalmed.

__

"It's like an assembly line," she said.

__

He nodded.

__

"It's the best way. It keeps everything in order," he said.

__

"I guess so. It's what _you're_ used to, anyway."

__

She stood up and walked over to the closest box.

__

"Go change, and I'll see what I can fix up for breakfast. We can start on the rest after we eat," she said.

__

He nodded.

__

"Okay. I'll be right back," he said.

__

He bent, picked up the t-shirt and pants, and walked towards the bathroom.

__

She began to look in the box, then suddenly blushed and froze in place.

__

_Wait a minute..._

__

She waited until she heard the bathroom door close before she got up to look at the contents of the bag that Sousuke had emptied.

__

_I_ know _those two. And I bet they like to play jokes on him sometimes. So..._

__

She sat on the floor and carefully sorted through the items, looking for anything that looked suspicious.

__

Finally, she came upon a labelled translucent tube, capped on both ends, with _PORTABLE 1-LITER EMERGENCY WATER CONTAINERS_ printed in English on the label.

__

Her eyebrows went up, she removed one of the caps, touched inside the tube, then gasped and dropped the tube.

__

" _Ah-_ " she managed to say.

__

_That...didn't..._ feel _right..._ she thought, then took a deep breath and picked up the tube.

__

"Okay, let's try this again...let's figure out what this is..." she said warily, then looked inside the tube.

__

Her mouth dropped open, then it closed firmly, her eyes narrowed and her body began to shake.

__

_How the HELL can THOSE be a joke?! IT'S NOT FUNNY!_ she managed to think as she just barely managed not to throw the tube across the living room.

__

The bathroom door opened, and she forced herself to calm down.

__

_I'll hide them -_ this. _Yeah._

__

She quickly grabbed one of the towels, wrapped it around the tube, then "inconspicuously" put it aside.

__

_I'll deal with this later,_ she thought, then hurried back to the box.

__

-FMPFTWT-

__

Sousuke watched Kaname with a raised eyebrow as he carefully laid the suit on the bed.

__

_Is she all right? What happened? But it wasn't an enemy,_ he thought.

__

"Kana-"

__

" _Ah!_ "

__

She held up two "survivor's rations" cans with freeze-dried contents. One was sausage patty crumbles, and the other was scrambled eggs.

__

She smiled at them, then put them down and went back into the box.

__

"Now where's the can opener...but, knowing how you all are, it'll probably be a _knife. You're_ going to have to open them if that's the case, because _I'm_ not gonna do it," she said irritably.

__

He scowled. Whatever the problem had been, she wasn't going to tell him without an argument being involved.

__

" _Ohh, bacon!_ Oh, but you can't eat that, or the sausage either. And maybe the eggs. They don't know, do they?" she asked.

__

He shook his head.

__

"No," he said a little too firmly, and winced.

__

_I want her to tell me what's wrong,_ he thought.

__

She sagged.

__

"Well, it's all stuff like that in there. Maybe there's canned vegetables in another box....ahh, _damn it._ Sousuke...I didn't mean..."

__

She now looked as though whatever had caused her more recent distress was combining with her distress over his diet restrictions, and he hurried to sit next to and hold her.

__

"It's all right. We'll manage," he said.

__

She hesitated, then nodded.

__

"Yeah. We'll manage. But...can we stay like this until we're sure?" she asked him a little nervously.

__

He laughed softly.

__

"You don't need an excuse. I'll hold you whenever you want, for as long as you want," he said.

__

"You're _wonderful_ \- right now," she said in a way that told him that she was blushing.

__

"And you're _beautiful. Always_ ," he said, then blushed himself.

__

She shook a little, and he wondered if she was going to cry.

__

But instead, she said his name _very_ nervously, and he swallowed.

__

_She wants to sleep,_ he thought.

__

He could putter about while she slept, but he could do with some sleep himself.

__

But the only thing to sleep on was _the bed_.

__

He looked at the towels and bedsheets.

__

_She could lie on the bed and I can make one up for myself with some of the bedsheets and the towels. I'll sleep close to her and if I wake up first I'll find something for us to eat. If_ she _wakes up first she'll do that also. But before that either of us would check on the other-_

__

He sagged.

__

_We're going to share a bed regardless._

__

He almost absentmindedly kissed the top of her head.

__

_And truthfully, it won't be the end of the world. Just, maybe...my peace of mind,_ he thought.

__

He carefully stood up, taking a suddenly yawning Kaname with him.

__

"Come on," he said softly.

__

"Okaaay," she said.

__

He slowly walked over to the bed, laid her down on it, then lay a few feet away from her.

__

She grimaced, then moved next to him, laid a hand over his heart, and fell asleep.

__

He placed a hand over hers without thinking about it, then realised it and his eyebrows went up.

__

_But this is_ improving _my peace of mind,_ he thought, then smiled peacefully and fell asleep.

__


End file.
